Code Lyoko: A Human Virus
by DogBrigade
Summary: 20 years passed since the original ended. Nothing should happen. A new Kadic Academy student turns on the machine, however, and finds a teenage boy and trouble. What, then, threatens humanity? Main OC cast; T for safety; more description inside
1. Chapter 1: Tremors

**Author's Note**: I severely apologize to anyone screaming, "HOLY CRACKERS, THIS THING IS HUGE. TEH HECK?" To that I say that this is supposed to be a story taken seriously- well, to me. What I mean is is that this is serious work. I know, I know. Writing fanfiction isn't the most serious piece of literature on the planet as, well, most of these elements are **not** my own to manipulate or created from my own imagination. Still, I hope that with the addition of an main OC cast and minor OCs characters that will have no prominent effect on the original story or the original story affecting the current one.

Because don't we all hate it when our beloved characters are derailed/demonized/not written as they were?~

So, with that, I also will try my best to stay in character with the minor characters that I do use from the original source material (and give credit to Moonscope for everything!) and the fictional elements be researched. Er... this is taking a while to write out. Darn me and my explanations! Any questions and such can be PMed to me (though I can't guarantee swiftness since I go to school and all)!

**Extended summary**: 20 years passed since the original Lyoko Warriors ended the nightmare. If that was the case, nothing should happened if the computer was reactivated, right? A new Kadic Academy student ventures into the factory and turns on the machine, however, and finds a teenage boy and new trouble. What, then, threatens humanity? A new or old threat may lie in wait for the new Lyoko Warriors. It all seems that history has repeated itself once again. [Main OC cast; T for safety (bloodless violence; possible minor/mild adult themes; no swearing); LONG STORY/CHAPTERS]

* * *

_Chapter 1—_**Tremors**

Most leaves had already fallen to the ground as masses of orange, red, and yellow. Some chilly air blew hours of hard labor, gathering up debris into piles onto the streets where energetic vehicles crushed them into little pieces. These shattered nuisances ran away with the drafts, never to be seen again. In the surroundings, the naked trees looked rather lonely, yet they knew that it was their duty during this time of year to be lonesome giants. The smell of radiating heat in the air could not be detected; everything was covered in the scent of sheer coldness, a distilled void. Already it would seem that winter was coming, for soon there would be hardly anything to smell; however, there were still the odors of spices wafting from houses. Not much noise existed, with the exception of various cars on the streets, shouting, and laughing in the far distance.

A lot of the background energy concentrated in several children running around towards the grounds of rectangular buildings. In the environment, bells could be heard, buzzing away at people's ears. In every direction, giggling and snickering were present; some individuals could be seen frowning, sulking, or having their arms folded as their backs were to the building and column walls. A certain section of the front area, consisting of arches, was a popular place for vibrancy. All the buildings' roofs consisted of a teal color; none of the actual bodies had the same paint, but they all went for dull shades. On each building, varying shapes of windows were found, though one form would be used a single row, to keep consistency but also a contrast. Trees lined near the buildings and pathways, along with some stone. They were evergreens, and so the giants resisted dropping their leaves, preferring the company before the real cold set in. The paved floor of the institution looked almost like a pale dirt ground. Sometimes it smelled subtly akin to the earth itself. With the tree scent spreading around on gentle winds, the fragrance was a nice touch.

An announcement came on through the speakers for all new students to enter the theatre for a quick orientation. Many smaller individuals left, leaving a majority of the older children to head towards the north. One student who was leaning against a support column, arms folded, sighed and picked up a bag and backpack before, also, going along the path to follow the taller people. Brown eyes stayed on the ground, making movements as a rock or twig came along; automatically, nerves sent streams of information to the brain while short, black hair swept across the visual organs, only to be pushed behind the ears.

Suddenly, the student bumped into something bulky, breaking concentration and prompting to look ahead, and then up. Now visuals of brown hair, a white headband, strong chin with whiskers, and a bandage were sent into the brain. Only ill thoughts remained as everything was processed. "Mr. Morales… Uh…" Spots of gray were detected in the hair of the big man, but the student could not notice the tiny detail for now. Words filled the thoughts in negativity.

"Oh, ho! And what do you think you're going? Didn't you hear the principal?" Mr. Morales cleared his throat. "I think I heard clearly that all new students must go to the theatre! Even you!" His gigantic gut stuck out as the man erected his posture, putting his arms behind his back. Small squeaks erupted as his red coat moved and rubbed against itself. "And remember this: call me Jim."

The student furrowed brows and deepened a frown all the while fixing the position of the black military-style cap, turning the headpiece until it seemed to point straight forward. "I'm not exactly a 12-year old. Why do I need to go to some stupid orientation? It's the-"

" 'Same old stuff'?" Jim interrupted, reciprocating the student's downward brows with his own. He stepped forward, his black sweat pants not making nearly as much sound as his coat, and stuck a finger at the student's face. "Now listen here. I don't care if you're a twelfth grader or had been to Kadic Academy before, but rules are rules. Get yourself to the theatre now!" A 'humph' escaped from his lips. He raised his finger higher in the air and, with eyes closed, began to speak again. "And don't you dare- Hey!"

Jim had to stop himself from falling backwards as the student brushed hard against him and jolted down the path. The luggage bore down the potential maximum speed, but the increased acceleration kicked in as the ears perked to Jim's calling and running right behind real fast. Several twists and turns were made, and the person attempted to lower the panting to a bare minimum. The wind slipping past the student's vest did not help hearing out for Jim, as the man had stopped calling.

After a weak sprint, the person was already grasping the knees covered by cargo pants of off-white hue, huffing out heat within. The student's eyes fell on the dirtied brown, slip-on shoes, trying to regain respiratory and adrenal equilibrium. Panting still continued as the bags were taken up and carried down the current road. At a short distance away, the nose picked up delectable odors originating from a smaller building, leading to the teenager to cease and take in the aromas; it had taken a good minute for the walking to resume following pats of the stomach. A sigh slipped out.

Just as soon as the student's foot crossed onto a new path, the big man had stepped in to block off entry, turning his determined frown into a smirk. "I caught ya red-handed, you little miscreant!" The student twisted around but was caught from the back and was lifted into the air by the collar. There was no attempt to struggle; only another sigh escaped. Jim celebrated his triumph with snuffed-out laughter, walking in the direction of the theatre, carrying the student one-handed. "You thought you could outrun me, did ya? You're lucky it's the first day and no class and I'm such a nice guy. You'd be sent straight into detention for four hours!" Silence. "Try that stunt again in the future and we'll see to it that you get** eight** hours instead!"

Hardly three minutes later were they in front of the theatre complex, Jim shoving the student inside and saying to take a seat immediately. Few students turned around as the doors closed; and, without looking at them back, the troublemaker had sat in an empty chair at the end of a row, folding arms as the principal and his bushy mustache talked away without a care in the world. So many thoughts entered the student's head, and each one of them was met with a dirty look and an angry snort.

"Wonder what's that guy's problem?" The student overheard a conversation just an earshot distant. "Seems to be such a hotshot, moping like that after probably having a run-in with Jim."

Snicker. "How should I know? All I know is that he looks rather angry!"

Spiteful snort.

* * *

The student could hear more people talking about the frustrated behavior earlier as the legs pushed towards the dormitories. Jim was there, watching children pass by with a stern eye, but he had given a sterner glance at the person who had given him trouble earlier. "You. In all my life, I've never had someone try to ditch orientation. It reminds me of the time I had to chase down wild animals in the forest of the Conga."

"Really now?" was all the person would say.

"Yes. But I'd rather not talk about it. Anyways, you aren't allowed here."

Raise of an eyebrow. "Why not?"

"Look here. You're a boy. This is the girls' floor. Upstairs, girls. Second floor, boys. That's you. Now you're just asking for detention and not just eight hours but-"

"I'm a girl."

Jim instantly went from a strict facial expression to that of confusion. His eyes scrolled from the top-down. "A cap, a vest, collared shirt, cargo pants. What kind of new fashion have I been reading into?"

He received a serious glare from the student, who now shrugged the luggage to fix stress on the shoulders. "It's no one's but mine, okay? Aren't you supposed to check me off or something?"

"Oh, uh, right!" Jim whipped the clipboard in front as he mumbled to himself inaudible things. "So, name?"

"Chione Stifle. 8th grade. Somewhere near the bottom."

The big-bellied man snorted out anger and made a checkmark on the paper. "Don't give me that tone, little missy. You should respect your elders. Especially you being young."

"Okay. Fine." Her tone snarled sarcasm, and she continued to watch Jim write on the board.

"I gotcha. Now move along. I don't want to catch you pulling any stunts in the future, you got that? I'll be keeping my eye on you."

Chione fixed her cap and walked towards the designated room. A group of girls were in the hall, giggling to each other, and gazed as the vest-wearing girl went to put in the key to the door. One girl piped up: "Hey! What do you think you're doing? You're downstairs! Creep!"

The key turned to the right and a click rung. "I don't have time for you, ladies. Just leave me alone." She did not bother to reply to another of the girls speaking to her as Chione shut the door and pressed her back against it while sliding to the floor. The bags slipped off the shoulders, her head tilted to the ground, and her vision closed off from the world. "I already hate this place."

* * *

Constant chatter drowned out Chione's joy. She sat at a lunchroom table, rolling a piece of meatball back and forth with her cheap dining utensil. Her stomach growled tiny whines, but she did nothing more but play with her food, her head resting on a propped arm. From time to time, she would fix her cap from slipping off entirely. After her stomach pleaded on a consistent basis, Chione stabbed the meatball and forced it into her mouth. Everywhere around the girl, there were people that occupied all the seats at a table – except, for the most part, hers. A couple sporadic students took the ends, and they struck up a conversation out of the blue, getting friendlier by the second – also obtaining a higher loudness as well. Chione went back to fooling around and paid no attention to the screeches of chair legs against linoleum in front of her.

"Do you mind if we sit here?"

Chione finally looked from the tray, keeping her stern aura as she noted a light-brown headed boy who had already pulled out the chair. His hair was short enough that his bangs did not abstract his view; however, in the right angle, the shadow that cast down displayed the boy like he was withdrawing into himself. Judging from how the short straight strands were, he simply brushed and nothing more. A lighter green unbuttoned shirt revealed the darker-colored shirt marked randomly with black reminiscent of a camouflage shirt. The dark-blue jeans did not have any wrinkles; they were long enough to cover some of the clean brown tennis shoes and not touch the floor. Sometimes, a glint of light bounced off of a thick silver watch on his left arm. Chione, when not blinded by the refraction, could see the second hand ticking.

He kept standing as his hand rested on the seat, as though he was in a guilty act. The girl's eyes reflected off the boy's set of green. She did not bother glancing over at whoever accompanied him.

After much silence and the boy opening his mouth to say something, Chione said, "You already pulled it out." Sigh. "What's there to ask? Just take it." She let out another sigh as she rose from her seat and spilled all the contents of the tray – minus an apple – into a nearby garbage can and placed the thing on top.

"W-Where are you going? I didn't mean to-"

She turned to the boy, noting features, and shrugged. "It's not you. The smells in here are making me nauseous."

The fruit's sweet taste occupied her mind as the girl left the cafeteria and embraced the sun's warmth, despite the chilly winds' soft brushes on her skin. One step was taken before Chione stopped and took in the area in her peripheral view. Near the cafeteria building was a forest not far from the city streets. "I guess a little green wouldn't hurt," she said to herself as she munched on the apple in tiny bites, proceeding to leave school grounds. In taking steps, her nerves were on edge; but, as soon as she stepped onto forest floor, everything in her body relaxed.

Pine and dirt scents mixed together to create special magic that cleansed the illness she was experiencing in the dining area. Accompanied by the apple smell, Chione could feel the effects of a sleepy spell over her eyes, but that was soon gone as she thrust a hand over her nose. Tears teemed in her eyes. She took a moment to wipe water away and looked around the area. Near her feet was a manhole, rust enveloping most of the metal, which brought her back into the reality that she might have ventured too far into the forest. She got on her knees, inspecting the area and setting down the unfinished apple. The grass was taller; yet, up close, the manhole would be visible no matter what. Chione looked around her current location, taking quick glances, prior to lifting the cover off, getting onto the wall ladder, and putting the metal over her head.

Instantly, the odors stung Chione's nose, making her hesitant to climb down. Her body wanted to go back to the surface; the thoughts of Kadic Academy pressed her on to set foot on sewer ground. Pungent smells tackled her. The water almost appeared a clear blue, but the liquid provided as much cleanness as the oozing walls. Just about everything was cast in a dirtied, dull white-tinted-orange color; and, wherever Chione's eyes went, they detected cracks either on the boundaries or the walkways.

The Kadic Academy student walked to the left of the ladder and followed the road, hugging the walls. Chione adjusted to the growing darkness and the eventual dripping sounds relatively quickly; as for the smells, she could not wait for her nose to get used to it. Her senses were frantic due to the eerie coldness and loneliness that was a sharp contrast to the cafeteria or – even – the orientation in the theatre. She encountered many diverging paths but did not take any. Her steps had gotten smaller, but the breathing – deep and resisting to take in more fumes – was longer, to where she was holding every ounce of oxygen in her system.

Chione halted. A new ladder appeared to come out of nowhere as she concentrated on her thoughts away from the sewer. Without a second to spare, the student hoisted herself towards the surface world, excitement rising to be rid of the sewer foulness.

Sunshine greeted her. She put the manhole cover back where it was and gazed at the new area. Chione went to the edge of the current narrow pathway and saw endless water rolling below her. Much like the sewers, rust sprouted randomly along the metal bridge and support beams. Litter was, surprisingly, low in appearance. Off in the distance, the student picked up on a subtle pine and dirt scent. Surveying farther, she saw a forest and made a mental note.

Next, Chione gave attention to a gigantic factory. It matched the scenery of ancient, long-abandoned melancholic settings in fiction. Many windows were broken; the ground nearby was cracking; there were signs that people entered and left lovely gifts in the form of trash. No smells originated from the building – with the exception of collected, musty dust. The factory could have been the sewers in terms of color choice, but it certainly smelled better. Only the bird calls and the strolling waters below provided amiable feeling. With no one around, it was just a lonely building; not even the broken glass pieces could provide much comfort.

Chione only shifted her position towards the factory and gained a notch in adrenal excitement. The decrepit state of the place had put her in a mesmerizing trance that pulled her feet forward. All childish humor glowed on Chione's face, her eyes wide and curious, registering the location along the way. She did not notice her footsteps beginning to echo. She crossed into the interior of the door-less factory and made her way to the edge. Stairs for people's convenience were not present; instead, hanging by themselves, two ropes dangled from the ceiling, moving slightly in the breeze. The academy student tugged at one chord, waited a second, and then left the safety of the higher ground to slide down the twine. Her heart palpitated faster; her breathing was even quicker. She disregarded any notion of security and well-being for a chance to ride in the elevator. When the red up button was pressed, nothing happened. Chione groaned and observed the numerical panel below the elevator buttons. They were numbered in the way of a phone. The girl brought her big, brown eyes closer for a better inspection, and she found traces of stains more prominent on the numbers 1, 6, and 7. Out of pure instinct, she tried the numbers in increasing order, punched the down button, and away she went – with a cocky smirk on.

At the end of the ride, the student had been taken to, what looked like to be, a humongous computer lab room. This single area had the most color she had seen in the day: greens, yellows, oranges, and white shot her visual senses to the maximum. She stepped off the elevator and ignored the shutting of the door. "Way cool." Chione smiled and walked over to the module, not bothering to sit in the barber-style, mechanical chair propped next to it. With the exception of the numerous, big chords connecting to the computer and laid lazily over the floor, there seemed to be nothing majorly different from this and an ordinary PC. Her fingers tapped on some buttons. Nothing happened. Chione tried to find a power button – or even the symbol for it – around the area, but her efforts were fruitless. Scowl.

Her curiosity was not satiated. Chione went back to the elevator, hit the down button, and took another floor. After taking a peek into a section with – what looked like – three pillars, she passed them off for now and went to the next floor. She mentally argued with herself that while the three columns appeared interesting to inspect, reactivating the computer was most important. Everywhere she had glanced over had cables. It was likely to assume that the generator would need to be turned on anyways.

This time she landed into a room more full of flowing chords and a circular yellow and black machine in the center. She approached the middle with some caution instilled in the footing, but she was unable to resist walking. Within a foot from the machinery, she saw a sliding panel, pushed a button, and opened the door for a lever. Chione was bit unnerved as the eye-like symbol etched on the panel was staring at her. The eye consisted of three concentric circle similar to a bulls-eye. She had no idea the reason for a short vertical line on top to be drawn away from the largest circle, but she guessed the three thicker segments going south, south southwest, and south southeast could have been eyelashes.

It still bothered her.

Anxious emotion fled the moment the lever appeared. The girl held onto the switch and pulled down – no hesitation present. White light filled the area from the machine. Chione took a step back, considered her moral options a bit too late, and prepared for the worst by covering herself. Not long did the illumination disappear and the room returned to normal. Chione released a breath of nervousness out of her system, turned to the elevator, and rode it up.

She returned to the computer room and slowly walked to the module, humming to herself, enjoying the moment. "Whoa…" Her eyes were glued on the computer screen warming itself, multiple windows popping fast like chain-reaction explosions. She darted attention to the sphere made of map-like axes that sprouted from the center of the room near the monitor. "Wow. Wow… Wonder what all this stuff is for." Chione raised a hand to the sphere and could feel nothing but air even as her hand went through. "Must be a hologram of sorts. Who did all this stuff?"

Chione jumped slightly. Muffled sounds were heard; and, she twirled around to see nothing or no one to make the noise. She could not figure out the source; Chione folded her arms and tried to listen for the general direction. "The computer?" The student looked at the keyboard. On top of the buttons was a headset with a microphone that could be slipped onto one ear. Deep breath in and out. The girl rested herself on the chair, twisted to set herself in front of the panel, and continued to just listen. There were pauses from the next set of sounds, only for them to start again.

The headset rested on her right ear neatly. The girl could not bring herself to speak at the moment, finally feeling the first conflicted knot in her chest in a long while. Her breathing went silent – in short intakes and exhales. Her eyes had gone shaky, and Chione shut them to attempt calming herself. All the while, her fingers tapped lightly on the computer keys, deep in thought.

Chione brought herself back into the world as she heard a voice.

"Hello? Anyone out there? Answer me!" The voice sounded deep but youthful. There was a soft and smooth quality that reverberated against the walls of Chione's ears. No gruffness; no hint of rough nature; it seemed to be the perfect voice for drawing in people with friendly candor.

Gulp. Pause. Silence.

"Hello? Can someone answer me?"

Chione focused on the keyboard, a series of quivers debilitating her sense of reason, and she made a decision. "…Who's this?"

Quiet.

"Uh… Hey? Are you still there?"

"Oh thank everything. Thank you. Someone finally answered."

The girl had long wiped any sense of juvenile amusement with that of prevalent fear, but she would not let it show in voice. Chione continued to talk with apprehension filling her chest heavy like dead weight. "Exactly what or who are you? Are you some sort of AI? Something from science fiction?"

There was another unhealthy pause before another reply. "I… don't know. I don't remember anything."

"Not even a name?"

"…No." Another pause. "I was hoping you could tell me."

She rested her head on a propped arm. Chione pretended that she could see who she was talking to by shaking her head. "All I did was start up this computer. I know just about as much as you." Her other hand was playfully tapping the keyboard. "Are you something I can see? It's kind of awkward talking to a screen."

"I wouldn't know. Sorry."

Sigh. "Some help you are. I'll figure it out myself. Somehow." Without a thought, Chione pressed the function keys in increasing numeral order. Each one brought up a new window not holding information she wanted, and she exited out of them to save desktop space. All through the function keys, the girl did not get any useful visual. "Nothing. That's just great."

"That's too bad. I'd've wanted for you to see this world with me."

Blink. "Wait… world? What are you talking about now?" Chione tilted her head to the side. "You're in… a virtual world?"

"I'd assume so. There's lots of trees where I'm at. Some kind of sea below, too. It's pretty green everywhere."

"…A forest- Well, minus the sea part."

"Is that what you call it?" Laugh. "Well, I knew it was a forest. Just playing."

Chione furrowed her brows. "First you're a useless – I'm going to assume – program, and now you think it's okay to laugh? What makes you think I can't just shut you down right now?"

"What? I'm inside some computer? If I'm here, there must be a way you can be here too, right?"

Shake of the head. "Impossible. That stuff's in movies."

"Hey, you know, there's something I do remember. Would you like to know?"

The girl relaxed a little. Confusion spread all over her face; yet, at the same time, her heart pounded in haste. "What? Spit it out, man."

"Something about these… er… scanners. Something about being in this virtual world – with me. I think you can do that. I think you _can_ come here."

She tilted her head down to the floor, closing her eyes halfway. Many notions and invisible questions popped into her head; all she decided and agreed with had led to a single conclusion, though she was not going to admit it. "What makes you think I'm going to trust someone- _something_ I can't see? Huh? You could be a trap. You could kill me."

"Why did you turn on the computer then, knowing those kinds of things could happen?"

Now, she could not gather her thoughts. Embarrassment and frustration exploded in her chest. Chione felt heat collecting in her face. Logic failed her. "I…"

"Look." The tone dipped down to a serious, deeper mood, which drew Chione in towards the screen in a mysterious fashion. "If I'm an AI, I am reading you clearly right now. Wherever this computer is, it must be pretty secret, since it was shut down. This world needs something more than a standard computer. It's a… uh… supercomputer. You turned on the supercomputer; you ventured to secret parts and turned it on. You're a bit of a risk-taker. You even answered to my calling. Don't play with me like that." Sigh. "I can't promise that you'll be safe because I have no proof, but… I know you want to see what I'm seeing. I know how to set up the scanners. You can see me and the world. That's what you want, isn't it?"

She shut her eyes tight, shaking while being flustered. Agitation slipped into her words. "You cocky program. Whatever. Fine. Tell me."

A light-hearted chuckle vibrated in Chione's ears, to her chagrin. "F5: simplistic current map. It holds the coordinates for my pointer. F2: coordinate set. X and Y, you know the drill. F8 should bring up a countdown. At the bottom, type the command '/virtualization'. You'll have a little over a minute. You can find the scanners yourself."

Chione's fingers hovered over the function keys. A wisp of air went through her teeth, her eyelids still shutting her into darkness.

"Did you get th-"

"Yeah, yeah, I got it. Ugh."

She followed the directions as stated, starting with the map. Earlier, the student did not bother to note any of the windows that popped up that did not give her a possible face of who – or what – she was talking to. On the screen, a single green arrow was stationary; the only thing that moved was the circle surrounding the arrow, which did a ripple-like effect by spreading out and disappearing gently. Chione typed down the coordinates in the next window, exhaling short, tense air out of her nose. Performing the final step, the girl got off her chair and, from the elevator, slowly watched the countdown go. Her fist pushed for the down button. "I can't believe I'm doing this. I can't believe I'm doing this."

The black-haired teenager opened her eyes to the three tower-like pods in the room. She wanted to stand and check on the machinery; but, remembering the countdown, Chione headed inside one pod as nervous energy shot to her legs and arms. She had to gulp to calm herself even a smidge. Her nerves did not help the experience when the door abruptly closed and sent chills up her spine. "Oh boy. I'm in trouble now…"

A bright ring formed around her feet; it began to hover steadily to the top of the pod and back down like a simple mountain climb. The girl clenched her teeth and shut her eyes during the process. Her curiosity could not be mustered enough to attempt any other action besides results of anxiety and dreading fear. All the emotions flowed to her gut; and, in exchange, her stomach wanted to return the apple out of her body.

A light flash engulfed her completely. Chione felt weightless; her heart said she was dead.

* * *

"Stifle." A teacher was reading from the roll call, during which the rest of the students had fun talking amongst each other. "Stifle? Huh. First day of class and already absent? Not a good start, not a good start."

A light-brown haired boy looked at the professor with wide eyes and stole glances around the room. Three chairs were empty, but the teacher had finished the roll call with only one absentee. Everyone else had busy lives to update one another about their first day at Kadic Academy. The boy knotted his brows up.

The student next to him nudged him. "Hey. Something wrong?"

He peered at the door. "Not really. Well, actually, okay." The boy turned to the person, worried. "I remember a Stifle in one of my classes earlier. Lunchtime, I had taken a seat with a guy, and he left because he felt nauseous. I could have sworn…"

"Sworn…?"

"This same person was in my class. Now he's gone. It's just my intuition, but…"

The kid laughed wholeheartedly. "Wow. Are you really that worried? He might have gone to the infirmary."

"But…"

"Relax. You shouldn't care. You don't know him."

"I suppose…"

From the front, the two students heard the teacher clear his throat and tap his foot. He leered at them. "Boys, am I interrupting your conversation? Please, let me know when you're finished."

The light-haired boy shook his head and hung low as red showed on his face. "No, sir… I'm sorry."

Class resumed without any more disruptions. The boy placed his head on folded arms, continuing to look at the door. "I shouldn't, but I do…"

* * *

Chione was suspended in the air, arms and legs stretched out, as her body was forming digitally. At first, the girl appeared as a transparent web of wires that framed her skeleton and model, being created like the initial stages of a three-dimensional character in a video game. Square platelets of shading and color, little by little, manifested on her body from the top-down.

Halfway through the process, the girl could feel her bodily functions running again. The senses of sight and hearing had come back on, yet her mind had not caught up to the current situation. Chione had barely a moment to crack open her eyelids before she was pressed down by gravity, dropping to the ground much too early for her brain to capture the situation. She could not even let out a scream, replacing potential fear with a sound of pain as the student fell hard against the floor, landing on her back.

"Ow." Chione noticed the injury subsiding as she got on her feet, but she was also occupied with the surroundings.

In confirmation with the voice, the area had a huge amount of trees and plenty earthy green colors to classify as a forest; however, the wooden giants did not take root on the ground Chione stood on. She stepped over near the edge, widening her gaze as the trees' roots – prominent and numerous – dug themselves into the sea mentioned before. Streams of garbled numbers, letters, and symbols flowed throughout the waters, seeming to go nowhere but wherever they desired. On the mainland, the girl saw stumps big enough for a small house having openings for shortcuts to the other side.

Everything was cast like actual forest colors; but, from where Chione stood, everything also had the wrong feel to them. No matter what she was looking at, the shading was extremely smooth; so smooth, in fact, that it gave everything an unrealistic look. Not only to add: an object could only have one color rather than specks of other hues. Despite an attempt for realism, the color scheme made the environment cartoonish. "It's like I'm in a video game…"

A bad sensation shot in her stomach. The teenager went to place both hands on her abdomen, looked down, and let out an astonished, quiet gasp.

She had forgotten the queasy feeling upon seeing a gloved human and demonic-looking hand clutching at her stomach, and immediately brought them out in front of her eyes. The left hand was normal – at least, in terms of shape – as far as she could tell. Chione did not pay further attention to the fingerless glove on the left, concentrating on her deformed right. It was significantly larger, black as licorice, and muscular; and, when testing the clenching, the gigantic claws scratched against her skin. She first thought of a monster tearing out the flesh of an innocent being in a horror movie. The girl tried to banish all thought as she glanced at her attire.

Chione gained hair flowing past her shoulders, getting in the way of the single strap hanging loosely on her left shoulder. Stopping at her knees, a light-blue cocktail dress had tightly been fitted on her, with a lonely star printed a little to the right of the bellybutton. Some pant material could be seen barely under the dress. Her legs went bare after the knees, and stopped at the black, flat shoes without any features.

"Eh. What kind of fashion sense does this supercomputer have? That looks kind of terrible, to be honest."

Chione slowly twisted herself around, blinking wavering eyes. She then scowled. "No fair. You're better-dressed than me."

The teenager boy held his right hand on his waist, smirking. Underneath red and white armor placed at the chest, shoulders, around the waist, forearms, and from the knee-down was a dark-brown tunic-like fabric that covered the rest of the body, looser than Chione's dress in looks – if not for the cream-colored belt worn at his hip. Compared to the girl, he was better protected in any confrontation, having armored shoes to add insult to injury. Behind his back – and gripped in one hand – was a long, gleaming white lance, glittering at the tip due to being gold.

The boy's blue eyes focused on Chione's brown. "It's not my fault. I guess this is what your heart truly wants."

Glare. "Forget you."

He struck the lance into the ground and raised his hands palms-up. "I'm sorry; I'm sorry. Look. I'm glad you came… uh…"

"Chione."

"Cool. Chione. I'm glad you came. It's kind of lonely out here."

The girl rolled her eyes to the sky, orange in color. Not a cloud could be seen, but the trees appeared to tower beyond, to the heavens. "It's kind of cool." She averted attention back to the guy. "But you still don't have any memory of who you are?"

He shook his head. "Nada." Toothy smile. "But I think you could give me one until I remember. You're practically my new master of the supercomputer."

Chione relaxed fierceness in her gaze, but then shifted attention to the ground. "Okay. I guess." She closed her eyes and pictured many names floating in her head. Silence fell between the two, she hearing the boy move his feet slightly but not giving much care. She eventually spoke again after making a decision. "Aaron."

The boy raked his fingers through his messy, black hair. "Um… Do I look like an Aaron?"

Chione placed her hands on her waist. "Why would you know? You're just a program, right? Have any better ideas?"

He shook his head again. "No. Sorry. Until I can remember, okay?" Proclaimed 'Aaron' took his lance and swung the weapon across his shoulders, hanging his arms on there. "We should try exploring the place. It's-" The sudden disruption resulted from the boy being blown to the side from red light. Where he was hit had electric sparks chattering until they vanished. "Ouch, man."

Three little machines stayed at their positions, staring at the two. The eye symbol, black and mysteriously staring, on the sliding panel had made a return on their supposed foreheads. A round piece was placed lower on their bodies, acting as maybe mouths. The little critters walked on four metallic legs, scrawny for their tops but seeming to work well for their anatomy. With exception for the legs, they were dirt-brown and had a unique head shape.

"Their tops look like primitive skulls," Chione commented before getting hit in the stomach. She slid near 'Aaron', clutching the injured area as sparks flew. "Dang. They hit hard. What do we do?"

'Aaron' gripped around the lance and stayed down on one knee. "Play it like a video game: fight." The male pushed himself to standing position with his weapon and started dashing towards the machines, his lance trotting behind his back in one hand. The monsters shot at him, though they missed him badly. He was about to strike at one, letting out a battle cry, until he was blown off his feet by three shots at once.

Chione supported herself off the ground due in thanks to the right hand. Her eyes shifted from the three creatures to her demonic arm and back again. "This is my weapon? Well, I guess it will have to do." She rushed to help 'Aaron', dragging her feet after now noticing the weight difference from her right and left sides, and tried to swipe at the creatures. Much like the boy, she was hit by a triple shot to the leg, thigh, and chest, resulting her falling to a knee. Her teeth clenched in much malaise. She snarled, "This is so stupid."

The two heard the whirling noise of shots being charged; they both could not stand. 'Aaron' laughed in wheezes. "We're such failures."

Even in the tense situation, the girl had to chuckle – extremely soft chuckles lacking humor. "No doubt about that. Looks like we're dead…"

Chione was hit first, landing her backwards once more. Her body disintegrated, going through a reversal of how she was brought into the virtual world. Pixels of definition disappeared into the air, her framework body was left with no energy and, as the final step, her transparent model faded away. The boy saw a shot of blue light hit his chest and, he too, followed Chione – after having electricity flow around his virtual body and wrap him until he fully disappeared.

In their victory, the machines nodded and walked from the area in a stride.

Two of the scanners had opened, releasing small quantities of steam into the room and gradually turning clear. A thin hand held onto the door, shivering, only for a head of messy hair to pop out, panting heard. 'Aaron' was gasping – sometimes choking on his own oxygen intakes. One sneaker stepped from the pod before the male almost tripped. He patted his body from the chest to the knees and pinched his cheek. His fingers rubbed the fabric of the oversized green hoodie and white undershirt; and, seeing dust on his jeans, the boy fixed the denim. He went through his hair after all the self-checking was completed.

Suddenly, his eyes had grown larger in relation to his hand dropping to the side. "I… remember my name. I remember my name!" 'Aaron' calmly limped to the other scanners, biting back any pain-filled expression caused by fatigue-resulted sores. The capsule held a person inside with their head down. 'Aaron' smiled. "Chione, I actually remember my name. You… Huh?"

Chione lifted her head up, blinking. Her fingers tapped against the floor as silence permeated between the individuals. She said, after closing her eyes halfway, "Well? I'm waiting. What is it?"

"That's you, Chione? Huh." The boy placed his head against the door of her scanner, a hand just above it. He looked confused. "Wait. You're taking this rather calmly."

She raised a brow. "About what?"

"About me out of the computer. I'm super shocked, and you're just sitting there as though this is normal."

The cap-wearing student got back on her feet while using the walls of the scanner for support. "It's _not_ normal. This whole place is not normal. I'm too tired to care; I can take whatever supernatural phenomena are coming my way now that I discovered this place." She fixed her hat. "It's incredible; I'll give it that much credit. For now, though, I just don't care and want out of here."

'Aaron' removed his head from the door, frowning. "Wait. You're just leaving? Just like that?" His other hand gripped on the other side, blocking Chione's path. "I didn't think I would be saved by such a selfish person. You're just going to leave and ditch me like this."

"What exactly…?" Chione breathed out frustrated air. "I didn't mean it like that. I'm too tired to be surprised right now." She felt shaking in her legs, leading her to grip the walls harder. Her gaze fell on the boy as stern and cold. "You were about to say? What's your name?"

The boy took a moment staring at the girl in a bewildered look; afterwards, he unblocked the door, though his leer was strong. "Silas. That's all I remember so far."

"Silas…" Small smile. "Way better than 'Aaron', in my opinion. Alright." She stepped out and stood in front of Silas, tilting her head down but giving him her fullest attention. Chione spoke again before shoving her hands into her pockets. "You're out of the computer. That virtual world is full of monsters. What are you going to do?"

"Nothing but study the entire mechanisms. It's best that I figure out what it is and what it's for. Anything that could give me- _us_ clues to why it exists."

Raise of a brow. "Us?"

Smirk. "You're not going to back out, are you?"

"Would you stop?" Chione faced the elevator and took a step toward it. "I'm not. Okay? I'm not going to. It's too… exciting." She swiftly turned around, pointing a finger at Silas' face. "But one thing: you definitely need new clothes." She dropped the hand. "Another thing: I really hope you find some good info to keep me here. It's already stupid enough that I'm talking to some AI that's not in a computer; no one would be that crazy to stay for a virtual world."

He snickered. "But you. You're stupid and crazy enough." Silas showed her his palms. "Okay. Okay. I'll find ways to make you stay." To reciprocate earlier, the boy was giving his own finger at her. "I need something from you in return."

Blink.

"I need some food."

* * *

For lunchtime the next day, Chione did not stick around in the cafeteria long enough for the sickening odors to hit her hard. She had held in her breath of clean, outdoor air and took in smaller quantities inside the lunchroom when she could not make it last. Today's meatballs and potatoes, cookie, and green beans were scooped into plastic bags carefully, being precise in not getting any of the edibles onto the zippers. The girl sealed the food, stuffed them into a bag compartment in the front of her backpack, and headed for the door with the baggage slung over one shoulder.

The empty tray was put at its proper place. A voice followed Chione when she had turned for the double-doors, calling the girl by her surname, sounding humble and shy. The cap-wearing student slid her right foot about two inches away from the left leg, giving a better angle behind. "Ah. It's you again. From yesterday."

Nodding came from the brunette boy. His head lowered closer to his chest, while his eyes – the color of a lit-up forest – preferred the ground. "H-Hello, er, again. I'm Lukas. We have classes together."

Chione raised a brow with a neutral expression on her face. "Nice to meet you. Uh… can I help you?"

He shook his head. "No." Suddenly, he nodded furiously. "Actually, yes. Uh. Yesno?"

"…Right. 'Yesno'." She shoved her hands in the pockets. "I would love to chat, but I've got something pretty important to do. Mind making it quick?"

"Oh, um." Lukas brought his head to proper level and tried to give the girl eye contact, though he quickly shifted his body away, laughing nervously. "Sorry to bother you. It's just, well, I was worried that you didn't come to afternoon classes yesterday. You were in the morning ones. So…" He scratched at the area between the right shoulder and clavicle, continuing the little laughter as bits of cotton collected in his fingernails. When he spoke again, Lukas' voice lowered in volume. "I-I was worried something happened. You said something about being a little nauseous and the nurse-"

Widened eyes. "You… actually went to the nurse?"

Blink. A red line formed on his face, also bringing out a stuttering noise from his mouth. Students surrounding the two started to snicker at the Lukas child, whispering comments about him being a weird one. A couple even suggested deeper connections between Chione and the brunette – with much hinting that the two 'boys' were much closer in a relationship than they let on. Lukas pressed his lips tightly in one moment, opened them in another, and closed them in the third. After many seconds passed, the boy was exhaling short breaths, as though shooting them out of his system. "H-Haha. Well, um, I, you see..."

Chione blinked again, nothing but nonchalant in her mannerisms.

"I went to ask Yolande if you visited the infirmary – because I was worried – and she said you didn't, and then I had these visions that you got into an accident or something, and then I-"

"Okay. Stop. Seriously." Chione sighed. "I had detention. My gosh, man." Now students that had made snickering comments bawled out in an uproar. "If you're finished, I'm leaving. Goodbye."

Not looking back as the Lukas boy called out to her, Chione walked away from the scene, rubbing her right temple. "Boy. What a mess."

* * *

Tapping sounds rebound off the walls of the factory's computer room, Silas typing extremely fast and mumbling extraneous information streams to himself, losing focus on the bright screen. Seemingly myriads of windows came down on him, but he would exit out of them before they could steal desktop memory. Each pause Silas took to stare at the monitor led to him jotting down notes and formulas on a spiral notepad resting on his leg. The other type of momentary break in work made him press both hands on his stomach, which was making cacophonous growls. These gurgles were outcompeted to the only window that stayed on the screen constantly, showing a man reporting worldwide and local news from his gleaming wooden desk.

Silas heard the reporter mention the date a recent series of thefts had been committed, and the man ended on a note asking for potential suspect names. All movement ceased. The boy just stared at the screen straight in the center, biting gently on his bottom lip, and shutting his eyes. The man continued on with another important matter, but Silas covered his ears. A minute passed prior to him slamming his hands on the edge of the keyboard and opening his vision back to the world. "You've got to be kidding me."

Creaking sounds emerged behind him; in a frantic frenzy, the mouse rushed over to the exit box for the news report and made the window disappear. The boy returned to typing as the elevator doors loudly allowed a person to enter the room.

Footsteps raised in volume. Silas turned his head to see a bag of mashed potatoes and meatballs thrust close to his face, the cap-wearing girl clearly visible through the Ziploc bags. "Food time," Chione merely stated.

The boy at first smiled a toothy grin; out of the blue, he shifted his prominent happiness to fake anger. "Where have you been? I was hungry **yesterday**, and I'm starving **today** because I didn't have anything yesterday!" In a quick snap, he snatched the bag from her and slid off the chair to sit on the ground.

Chione drew out a fork and handed the utensil over. "Please excuse me, Master Silas. You see, people that go to school and don't follow the rules get into trouble. I got detention _because of you_."

He took the fork and immediately dug into the lunch, hardly chewing the masses shoveled into his mouth. Silas swallowed to speak. "Because of _me_? I beg to differ." Another forkful of food. He twirled his eating tool for the sake of drama. "You came here of your own accord. Don't blame this on me."

She laid on the cool floor, looking at the ceiling in amusement. "I get it. Just kidding." Chione reached into her backpack for a bag of green beans, raising another series of food to Silas' presence. "Don't forget your veggies."

Silas stopped obliterating the main course to stare at the green beans. His thumb and index finger took the bag, letting it hang loose and – if it were possible – sway in the wind. The stare shifted into a sharp leer. As randomly as the situation could be, the boy extended his arm to the left and powerfully threw the bag at the wall to the side. "Garbage!" he shouted the moment the bag smacked on contact, reverberating a popping noise, almost as if the plastic had busted open.

The girl sat up, her eyes larger from the loud noise. She said, after the green beans landed on the floor, "Dude, what the heck? Don't be picky!"

The boy shook his head, going back to the mashed potatoes. "You eat them. They look awful."

Chione gave Silas a side glare and pouted in a mixture of both amused cheer and irritation. "My stomach's still sick from being in the cafeteria." She slouched to the right, resting her left arm on a propped knee. "Hey. You seem to know a lot more than you let on. If I remember correctly, you mentioned something about video games yesterday."

Laugh. "I'm an AI, not a computer. You have to give information to a computer so it understands; AIs can inspect their surroundings and learn, like a human."

Suspicion was scribbled all over her face. "But heck do we know how long you have been out-of-commission – not to mention that you said you didn't remember much. Care to answer that, CARL?"

Silas finished through the potatoes and made his way to the cookie. "Who's that?" Shrug. "I don't know. It could be a subconscious thing. That's what humans believe in when they don't clearly remember stuff but know about it, right?" It took about four bites for the sugary treat to vanish into Silas' stomach.

Chione returned the shrug. "I suppose so. Whatever for now. What's more important is if you got anything good out of the supercomputer – before I'm just ready to shut the whole thing down and be off my merry way."

A gasp of contentment escaped his lips as he patted his stomach. "Relax. Sheesh." Silas pushed the notepad across to Chione, smirking. "I've got tons of info. All of which, I must say, would definitely make you stay."

The girl picked up the notes, immediately skimming through a page per second. "X.A.N.A.? Return to the Past? Lyoko? Well now, this isn't dangerous at all."

"Yep. During the visual scanning, I detected seven sectors: forest, desert, ice, mountain, island, fire, and plains. All of these _you_ can explore." Silas gave her an intense gaze, jovial glints playing in his eyes. "Doesn't that make you want to stay? Huh?"

Chione put the notes on the floor, and let out a smothered humph. "Definitely does. How about we try this tonight? Some exploration?"

Silas could not return the determination. "It's too risky."

"What?"

"I mean, I think it would be better if we had another person. Last time, you and I got brutally beaten by those roach-monster-things. We didn't even get to touch them once."

"We'll get better. We don't need other people."

Blue eyes narrowed into seriousness. "We _do_, Chione. If there's one thing we need, it's someone like a programmer or another fighter."

"Wait a second. You don't know how to program stuff? Ha. Some AI you are."

"Argh. AI or not, I don't know anything when it comes to programming." He went through his hair. "I can use programs to my advantage, but I can't exactly _create _them. That's just something I don't know."

Chione huffed air through her nostrils. "Whatever. Perhaps we'll pick up these people along the way, but I don't want to go searching for them. It'd be such a pain in the neck."

Sigh. "When it gets desperate, you gotta do what you gotta do." Silas looked over at the supercomputer, turned back to Chione, and gestured to the machine with his thumb. "Oh, and I think your time's up. Let's discuss this later, okay?" He folded his arms. "Enjoy yourself."

* * *

Afternoon classes had finished for the day, permitting students to relish the rest of the day without fear of getting detention. Right away, the flow of children to the outside had substantially increased the noise levels. Under the popular arches and the quad, echoes carried to the winds, passing along gossip to ears that were just exiting classrooms. The special permeable membrane known as the dorms let weary individuals in and vitalized ones out, thus a constant activity number remained. Those sleepy beings that did not bother to return to their homes could be perked just because of the vigor others exhibited. The sun attempted to give everyone a booster with warm rays; being with friends and close ones had left the giant star lonesome – minus the eventual clouds that tried to comfort it, only to get in the way.

Chione had sprawled herself along a bench, watching the sky hardly change in appearance. The socializing in the background had been filtered, giving the girl ability to observe and note small details. There was not much of a capacity to care in the situation that her peers were slandering her; she simply kept her eyes looking to the heavens and began to sense bits of tiredness affecting her.

Her eyes were drooping; the more she resisted, the harder it got to keep awake. Interrupting her chance to doze off on a wooden bench, though, was someone yelling for her attention in a hushed voice far away.

"_Pssst_! Chione! Chione!"

The girl tilted her head further back and rolled off the seat to stand. She returned a whispered calling. "Silas?" Chione stole glances left and right, seeing people involved in their little social bubbles, and walked to the barricade a few steps from the open gate, towards the blue-eyed male gripping on the bars, looking intently on her. The female student still had her words quiet. "Silas, what are you doing here? Isn't this a little dangerous for your comfort zone? Too risky for a non-risk taker?"

"Haha. Very funny." The boy brought his face closer to the bars, looking stern. "The supercomputer did something weird while I was taking more notes. It detected these towers."

Chione tilted her head. "And what's so important about this?"

His brows depressed further. "One has been turned on, and I'm getting some bad vibes from this."

The two watched the other oscillating back and forth beyond their control; and, on impulse, they drew their heads down, shaking tiny pebbles going with the same rhythm. People had spread their legs apart to take on the peculiarity, emitting noises in utter bewilderment. Green tree needles shuddered, prompting perched birds to flee on their wings. In the time of confusion, the trees made a melody, their brushing needles substituting for maracas, shaking in sporadic moments.

The rumbling subsided. Students and teachers got together concerning the situation while Chione and Silas only looked at each other, flicking their brows upwards.

"I told you so," Silas stated. "Bad vibes."

Chione snarled. "Save your jokes for later. Let's get going then."

* * *

They jumped into a different part of the forest sector, having more giant stumps with their shortcut holes. Chione traced her virtual body, scowling under her breath. "I still look stupid."

Silas said, "Don't waste any time." He turned to a general southwest direction, seriousness flowing from him. "Those quakes got worse. At that rate, the whole town might as well cave in on itself. Let's get moving. The tower is this-away."

Without warning, the boy dashed off. The Kadic Academy student breathed in and pursued after him. She saw that her speed was a slower than her male counterpart, noticing the distance growing between them. Chione justified that she would not be able to lose Silas with ease as the contrast were not detrimentally severe. She still had to let out annoyance from having a slacking pace.

The tower in question could be seen on the horizon as the duo sped across the vivid green terrain. The structure was quite similar to a tree, with the coils jutting from it diving into the ground like roots and the base a trunk. A tint of yellow on off-white was the choice of color for the main part, and the chords were a chocolate brown. Red flashes coursed through the 'roots', into the tower, implying production of the eerie aura encasing the column. Nowhere on sight were there prominent entranceways to get inside, which raised questions for the two fighters.

Silas and Chione did not stop running as they talked.

"That must be it!" Silas gripped the lance behind his back tighter.

Chione shouted, "Strange that we haven't encountered any monsters!"

The boy flicked his head to the left, and coughed. "Way to jinx us!"

Three roach-like creatures made way to the warriors, their creaking legs cackling as they approached the path Chione and Silas were on. About four feet from the road, they launched lasers at the two and on the road itself. Silas was hopping all over the place, going over attacks while closing the distance to the tower, sometimes using his lance to lift himself off the ground momentarily. Chione, on the other hand, was barely dodging the beams; with the slight speed deficiency and her now-discovered inability to leap as high as Silas, she was breaking more of a sweat avoiding than sprinting.

The trouble had escalated upon approaching the structure. Sounds of a giant object rolling stopped the two a few meters before the tower, the laser works ceasing as well for the moment. From behind their destination, a lustrous black ball, that had the height of the boy and girl combined, came into the scene and blocked their path. Chione glanced behind; the mechanical bugs were still but were in the way from retreating. She looked back at the sphere fit for a giant's bowling ball, threw it a good piercing stare, and took one step forward. As though triggered by a switch on the floor, the object opened up, revealing meshes of organic-looking matter connecting to the eye symbol. Charging sounds got rapid, light gathering at the eye.

"Oh…"Chione tensed up in the legs.

Silas completed her sentence. "…shoot."

Lasers fired from the back, but the duo had dodged any damage when they leaped to the sides to avoid the bigger threat: the behemoth of a red light arc spreading in two directions, one at them and the other that hit the tower's barrier. The great mass of translucent energy had accidentally destroyed one smaller enemy.

In great haste did Chione and Silas get on their feet, though the demonic-armed one immediately suffered an attack on the side. "Great." Her eyes narrowed when she saw light charging again. "More great."

The boy swung his weapon to the front, striking the ground softly with the point. "Looks like we don't have other options. I'll take care of the little ones; you try the boulder."

Nod.

The knight inched his way to the roach-like monsters, taking vast caution, deflecting beams by the swings of the lance. With the little creatures backing off when he took a step, the distance never changed, to his dissatisfaction. He tried to improvise, attempting to parry shots and go for a jumping attack; however, when he did so, they had brought him down to earth with a double-attack. Silas pounded a fist into the ground. "This isn't working at all!" He bit hard on his failure, rebounding to the plan before and kept thinking of other strategies.

Chione steeled her stance, the wall of an attack coming lightning-speed. A strange idea popped into her head, and the girl thrust out her right hand against the red light. On impact, the hit – rather than disappearing – was trying to push her back, but being unsuccessful as Chione supported her weight. The feeling was like two swords clashing at one another, both attempting dominance through pushing and shoving. Both cockiness and disappointment rose from her chest, and she did not have the time to contemplate which she felt more. Chione was getting pushed farther; soon, she would lose her footing and take a blow.

She wished that there was a method for slowing down or turning off the machine. The extra exertion to hold the attack lowered her head downwards. Chione peered at her other hand, an aura of faint blue forming a perimeter around it. "Hey now. What's this?" Her attention went to the monster, to her hand, and back to the bowling ball monstrosity. No further smart notions came in to her enlightenment; however, Chione took a chance with fortune and raised the human hand in the ball's direction. A smile crept on her face.

There was a stalemate between Silas and his own baddies currently; but, his energy levels were diminishing in a negative exponential curve, his weapon beginning to feel super heavy. "I'm so done for," he tried to laugh, coming off weak. He had enough to muster for one last swing; fortunately, at the moment the two monsters shot at him, his defensive slice had actually reflected the attacks back, destroying his enemies. Silas stood there, slouching his posture, and resisted burying his face in his hands. "I'm such an idiot!" Before making the small trek to the tower, the man had to swallow his disgust for lack of better plans.

Even prior to making the trip, he had turned around to see – from a distance – Chione's boulder creature shaking and emitting painful cries. On the outside, it seemed nothing was happening, other than the girl using her stronger arm to hold an attack and the human hand to send spiritual support to the monster. Silas watched and, then, his eyes grew. The light in the eye symbol flickered between being on and off; next, it lost all life, becoming dull. The arc of red gradually faded to nothingness, leaving behind the carapace of a once mighty foe.

Silas focused all attention on the corpse during the rush back to Chione's side. She did nothing but watch him run and stand near her, breathing deeply. "What did you do just there?"

She shrugged. "I dunno. Trusted myself, I suppose?"

Silas went up to the monster but stopped as the corpse vanished after fluctuating between existence and nonexistence. Scowl. "Now we won't know." He stroked through his hair, thinking; and, suddenly, Silas felt a wrap of cold on his arm sinking further to an icy freeze. He quickly pulled his arm closer to his body, only to see a hand at the spot where the chill was accumulating. The hand let go, returning heat to the area. The boy rubbed his arm, averting his eyes to Chione, who was giving him a questionable look. "Cold. You control the cold." Silas kept warming himself while going into explanation. "You must have given it a short circuit. Introduced moisture into its circuitry."

Chione folded her arms and digested the information. "I see. Hm. That's cool – no pun intended." She pointedly looked over at the tower. "But let's get a move on before we have to clean up smushed cats."

He followed her towards the structure, adding, "I don't get it. Your joking's a bit too morbid for my style."

She ignored Silas, touching the base. Upon pressing against the body, her hands were being absorbed into the tower. Chione did not bother asking, going through without a care as Silas came after.

The interior went for the color blue: dark blue for the walls, a translucent cyan for myriads of screen outlines running top and bottom of the digital building, and a dull teal for the utmost top. The only things not touched by the hue were the endless abyss located below the fighters' feet and the outlines on the floor – curiously in the shape of the eye symbol.

Silas walked toward the center as Chione stared deep into the chasm. He was noting the features of the inside, even including how the symbol glowed, layer-by-layer, as he strolled on over. Reaching the middle, however, a white glow lined around his body and a weightless effect took hold, making him float and gain altitude. His widened gaze fell on Chione, who watched but could not do anything by the time she noticed as Silas out of her jumping reach.

His heart beat with fear and intrigue – but isolated to intrigue when Silas' levitation ride ended at a platform several meters from where his partner was. Again, the boy placed himself in the center, making a panel appear right in front. "I don't know what's happening… but okay." By instinct, Silas' hand pressed on the screen and recognized his print. Words were being typed on the surface: "**Silas**," then "**Code Lyoko**." Silas felt emotion clutter in his chest and decided to say them aloud – as words that summarized the duo's accomplishment.

"Tower: Deactivated."

* * *

_**Disclaimer**: I do not, in any way, shape, or form, own Code Lyoko, for that idea belongs to Moonscoop. Any of the characters, plot elements, story elements, and sources from the original Code Lyoko show belong to Moonscoop. I, however, claim right to any characters and story/plot elements that are being introduced into the story as new ideas/absent from the original source material._


	2. Chapter 2: Beauty and Beasts

_SnickieFics_ – Thank you very much for the compliments, but don't be so harsh on your own writing or anything on my behalf. I'm sure you're a great writer in your own style. ^^

**Author's Note**: I don't know why I forgot to put this in my Author's Note last time but please read and review. I appreciate constructive criticism. Feel free to correct me, ask me if something doesn't make sense, or if I'm missing something important in the disclaimer. Thank you.

* * *

_Chapter 2_ – **Beauty and Beasts**

Silas and Chione stared at the supercomputer monitor. Text flooded from multiple windows, showering the girl's and boy's minds with useful information. Silas drew his brows downwards while driving a fist into his cheek, setting his elbow against the keyboard's edge as he sat in the chair. His face had stiffened into seriousness, leering at all the assorted content, also watching the reflected brown orbs look in simple curiosity. Chione held a softer expression, standing with no tension in her form.

"You were right," she said. "About the earthquakes and the tower. They were connected."

Silas' tone had dried into a solemn voice. "This must have been X.A.N.A.'s doing. These activated towers can affect your world – and I have the power to shut them down. To make everything and everyone safe." He turned the chair towards Chione. "It's like as though… my original master knew this was coming. That he – or she – knew I would have to deactivate towers against X.A.N.A." His hands placed themselves on Chione's shoulders, a little tight on grip, and frowned further. "Chione, this whole thing is way too risky. Even for you. Your entire world is in danger." His face loosened, showing concern. "If we keep this up, who knows what's going to happen – perhaps something even worse than earthquakes."

The student took no action, standing perfectly still even as she felt his heat warming her – to her discomfort. "Are you giving up on finding more info?" she asked. "There's a chance nothing bigger will happen." Her mouth curled into a determined smile. "Maybe we could defeat this X.A.N.A. for good. That could be why your master gave you the power."

Silas blinked in confusion, digested the words, and then grew furious. He gave Chione a good shake, tightness forming in his chest while doing so. "You're willing to risk thousands of lives for something you don't know. Wake up!" His hands slipped off her shoulders and clenched near his body. "It's a stupid world. It doesn't even exist. What do you know? You know just about as much as me. You want to risk innocent lives to play in this stupid world. Chione, think this through." He waved a hand at the sphere in the center of the room, glowing bright and rotating in various directions. "Your world, or this one. This one, which was created by a man on _your_ world. Which are you going to keep?"

Chione had stared at Silas before shifting attention to the floor. She was scratching her neck as she replied. "…Do you always have to be right in some way? Maybe this is a bit too much for me to chew."

His posture relaxed, and Silas snorted tense air out. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to scold you, if that's what you thought it was."

Shake of the head. "Whatever. It's done. I can't diss you for being more concerned than me."

Silas raised a brow. "Are you really as much as a risk-taker as I thought you were?"

Her arms folded when Chione's face contorted to a deep scowl. "I can deal with detentions—Heck, I can take my parents disowning me, if that were to ever come." The girl turned her head away. "If there's one thing about me, it's that I don't involve others in my gambles. It's one of my morals."

The boy jumped off the chair, all the coarseness in his face calmed in full. He twitched a frown and shoved his hands in pants pockets. "Could have told me that before. In any rate, let's go shut down this thing."

They continued to talk while walking to the elevator. "What will happen to you?" Chione asked.

"I'm not sure. We'll just have to see, won't we?" The last sentence, Silas said with a cocky smile on.

* * *

The two towered over the power lever, the machine's circuitry clicking as the sole source of noise. The golden river flow climbing up the generator's body had a cool tingle on Silas' hand. His fingers stroked the surface down, slow and steady. Silas followed his hand with narrowed eyes. "My home…"

Chione shot a quick glance at him and returned to stare at the machinery. "If nothing goes wrong, Earth will be your new home."

Smile. "And you'll be my friend. Friend to a perfect stranger."

The girl blinked after tilting her head towards the ground. "Friend… Um… right." Moments following, her neutral, uncaring appearance changed when a smile formed from her mouth. "Right. Sure. Okay." She discreetly swallowed warm emotions clustering in her chest, collecting fast as tornado winds. Her gaze fell on the boy; and, soon, Chione's hand gripped on the switch, focused fierceness imbued. "But if it doesn't work, we can still be friends. Not like I kill time any other way."

Silas appeared to be hurt by the cap-wearing student's words, taking hold of the same lever while looking like he was about to cry. "O' fair lady! You doth hurt me! Thy words so sharp as slings and arrows make my misfortune!"

Chione wiped away her honest pleasure in a flash. "I don't know what you're going on about, but you can shut up now." She could not hold onto her composure, for she snorted out amusement and formed a miniscule grin. "Let's be serious. You ready to shut this thing down?"

The boy gave a nod of the head prior to turning his attention to the generator. Chione and Silas stood together, eyeing the lever in intense unison, hardly making noises themselves. The male went first on the pulling, but the student from Kadic Academy did not fall too short behind. They heard the locking sound and let go; but, breaths of nervousness and bewilderment escaped from their mouths: the machine was still running. Any electric flow did not stop or even slow. The clicking droned on in their ears, as their eyes grew wide.

"What's going on here?" Silas scratched his head, his brows knit upwards. "You didn't do anything else before turning it on, did you?"

Chione shook her head and placed her hands on her waist. "No. Used the elevator, typed on the shut-off computer, and came to the room." Brown eyes landed on the boy. "You don't think it needs you to be on Lyoko to fully shutdown, do you?"

"No. I mean, why would I be given the chance to be in your world if that were the case?" He placed his hand on the machinery again. "It's still working properly. It's like as though it's not registering we wanted it to shut down." Silas turned his head to Chione, frowning. "Looks like I'll need to investigate further. There might be an internal problem." He patted the generator. "For now, you should go back. I wouldn't be surprised if your school was evacuating the place from those shakes." Silas watched the girl turn to the elevator; but, remembering an important detail, he grabbed her by the arm. "Wait. I want your number."

She blinked. "Excuse me? Like my phone number? Okay, sure. Paper and pen, please." Chione was handed the notepad and writing utensil, practically scribbled on an empty page, and returned them back in a strictly business manner. Not another word left her lips, leaving the place after being free from Silas' grip. While the elevator was closing its doors, the girl was rubbing the warm spot and gave a curious look to the guy, who was displaying a small smile and wave to her.

* * *

Time had hardly seemed to progress; the daylight was still a prominent piece of work being showcased, and the earth held no signs of damage. As Chione was slipping onto school ground, she noted the repercussions of the rumbles: glass shards spread below windowsills, various items scattered on the streets, and people huddled together discussing the action the government and news would take towards the past ordeal. The Kadic Academy populace was shuffling their feet into the dorms, with staff on the side announcing that classes were cancelled, pronouncing news with their booming voices through speakerphones. The girl watched on, fixing her cap from debris catching it all the while. The bush Chione hid behind covered most of her body; her eyes peeked out between the leaves, surveying the area in interest.

Jim stayed behind, much to Chione's chagrin. She overheard the bushy-mustached principal ask the big-bellied gym teacher to stay outside in case students got lost from the confusion – and the girl let out an inaudible groan. The red-coated man stood in the way of freedom and safety, arms folded, determination steeled in his stance. He was looking in the general direction of the Lyoko warrior's spot, having a cool expression on his face.

Chione did not possess many choices. She scowled at her only option.

Standing from the spot, Chione braced herself for a major scolding, cleansing the heart of any emotions and leaving nothing. Jim raised a brow and breathed a smothered questionable air as the person made their presence clear. The girl brushed off more leaves and made her way over to the teacher – and prepped for the worst.

"Stifle!" The man's voice was drenched in power and demand. "What were you doing in there and not with the other kids? It was a school safety procedure!"

Chione firmed her face and gave her attention through serious eyes. "I had business to attend to, Jim."

"More important than this? The school's responsible for your safety; we promised your parents that we would take care of your sorry rump, and you go ahead and possibly hurt yourself."

Nod. "That's about right."

Jim's voice got louder, in positive correlation to his reddening face. "Just who do you think you are? What kind of business would be more important than your safety and parents' well-being?"

"The type that is none of yours, sir." Chione was flashed a killer look, and she changed her tone a node softer. "Unfortunately, Jim, my business is very important – more important than my health. Certainly more important than the school."

His finger thrust itself near her face. "Clear disregard of safety procedure _and_ a cocky attitude will 'certainly' earn yourself a suspension if you keep this up, Stifle. It's out of the question that-"

"Jimbo-dear, please go easy on her! She was just trying to help poor me."

Chione and the teacher stopped their squabble, turning their heads in the direction of the new voice, both with confused faces. A female student sporting blond hair appeared at the gates, sweat and dirt present on her complexion. The grime offset her meek beauty, helped by the foliage stuck in her long, curled bangs on the sides. The rest of her golden locks flowed down her back to about chest-length, a bit wavy and glittering in the sun. She stood before the two in a tight purple cardigan sweater, a waist-belt, white skirt, and black boots.

The cap-wearing one looked at her own straight, short hairs, ignoring the brighter girl walking towards them.

"Bomber," Jim said, flicking a brow. "Do ya mind explaining what you just said?"

The blond girl said, wearily smiling, "Oh sure, Jimbo-dear." She cleared her throat while the teacher slightly flushed. "During the whole – what you call – 'evacuation' procedure, I just got sooooo scared! Everyone was screaming; everyone was shouting; I couldn't find my peeps!" She waved a hand to Chione, who was still inspecting her hair. "But then, Jimbo-dear, Stifey-poo just so happened to see me run away into the forest."

"What?" The black-haired girl finally looked up to the blond one, narrowing her eyes. "But I didn't-" She was silenced by a finger placed on her lips.

"Shush, shush! Let me finish with the heroic tale." The girl withdrew her finger and continued. "As I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted by my savior, Jimbo-dear, Stifey-poo had run after yours truly, Duchess Lynette, into the sinister forest full of nasty animals and tree junk." A smile spread on her face, getting increasingly excited. "She, like, totally was a hero, Jimbo-dear. All that dirt and grime and nastiness – you see – was from trying to save me from ugly, little hares and snails. But then, Jimbo-dear, she lost me. She lost me because she heard everyone was in trouble at school! She didn't want to leave me, I assure you, but she knew that everyone else's safety was more important than mine." The girl named Lynette balled a fist and curled her mouth into a smirk. "I had let her go, to save the school, and for me to fend for myself. And I, as the duchess, used every power in me to conquer my fear and valiantly return to the school." She relaxed her posture, smiling bigger and in good cheer. "And that's my story."

"…_What_?" Chione said again.

Jim scratched his chin, showing more confusion than before. "Sounds more like a heroic failure, if you ask me. But whatever. As long as you two are safe, I'll be willing to let this off the hook."

Lynette glowed in mirth. "Oh thank you, Jimbo-dear!"

"Now head inside, the two of ya. Classes are cancelled and you may relax."

The girls nodded and reluctantly entered the dorms, immediately climbing the stairs to their floor. The cap-wearing one stopped in front of her room, having said not a word to the blond girl. Chione felt a certain craving come on, promptly drawing a handheld device from her backpack while also retrieving the key. Switching on the little machine, her mind was already set in the world of ninjas and space, the words 'Galactic Ninja Stardust III' drawing itself on the screen. She was about to insert the key into the hole when she heard a shrill, cheery voice.

"Ooh. That's so old. I can't believe you're still playing such an old thing!"

Chione did not turn around to talk. "I didn't think you would be stalking me to my room."

Gawk. "How crude of my knight, who – I must say – _isn't_ a knight, since I, the duchess, had to save _her_." Lynette got in Chione's peripheral vision, grinning and curving brows up. "Since I had the kindness in me to help out a fellow girl, I should get something in return for my services. Come on, Stifey-poo. Can we be friends? I promise that we'll have the most fun and be great friends!"

"No. I don't feel like putting in that effort." She shot a nonchalant look at the blond. "And I don't want to be acknowledged as 'Stifey-poo', if you don't mind. It sounds so stupid." The girl inserted the key and turned the doorknob.

"Wait, Stif- Well, whoever you are!" Lynette softened her voice to an almost inaudible whisper, looking away from who she was speaking to. "I could tell you some tips on how to beat the game. If that would help any. I know some things."

Snort. "I don't want help. Thanks. I can at least thank you for helping me out earlier, but it can't go beyond that." Chione raised a brow. "I didn't think you would know this kind of stuff."

The blond blinked, and laughed out boisterously. "Haha! You're such a silly-head! Who said I knew how to play those things? I don't time for that stuff! Duh!"

"…But you just said—"

"Oh, please. The Royal Flowers are top girls for priming themselves up and making fashion statements across the campus. We're too occupied setting new trends, buying clothes, and handing out beauty tips to waste time on _video games_. I don't know where you got that preposterous idea!" She patted the top of Chione's head, flattening the cap. "But don't you worry, my knight. I'm ready to forgive your silliness and offer you fashion advice. That's our job as The Royal Flowers: to help fashion-deprived peers."

Chione rolled her eyes. "Right. Okay. Sure. Save your breath. I'm good." She opened the door and stepped through, turning around to give one final emotionless glance. "Now bye."

The door shut on the blond, who had changed her haughty expression to a sad look. She stood in the hallway, alone, the cold air setting in on her. Her presence stayed at the spot for many seconds, stiff, until she raised a fist to the door. Her hand shook along with her body, trembling, the girl setting her teeth on her bottom lip in gentleness. Lynette retracted her hand near the door, mumbling while looking down at the floor.

Seconds passed hesitantly before the girl walked away.

* * *

Smiling ear to ear, an elderly man wiped his forehead and marveled at a statue in front of him. He set his tools to the side, grabbing a cloth to clean the work, which glittered in the noon light flooding into the sun room. To his creation, he said that he was feeling empty in the stomach, patting the metalwork before shuffling down a hall and out the door.

Lustrous gargoyles protected the area, their skin alloys. Their deformed, ugly faces silently snarled whoever was not their master, even taking vicious poses to ward off anyone attempting to barge into the home. The two that were in the room were formed in pre-leaping postures, their shoulder blades prominent and muscular and the hind legs tensing. Sharp teeth glinted like the skin; everything was cast in gold. If they were able to smell, their noses would pick up on the nearby pine and dirt fragrance; if their ears had sense, they would have perked to the laughter and talking of children.

In the corner, sparks glittered in a plug. Black smog fumed out, emitting a hissing noise to make its presence more apparent. It slinked its way from the electrical prison and floated over the gargoyles. The smog dripped its body over the monstrosities like ooze, smearing over the metal heads.

Booting up like a computer, a red eye symbol popped up in their sockets; and, soon, vicious snarls crept from their metallic mouths.

* * *

Chione was leaving the lunchroom, smiling to herself while adjusting the backpack. Making sure a staff member was not following her, the girl scanned the area left and right, doing sharp, quick glances. After checking, she turned herself towards the gates. "Now to go meet my 'friend'…" An uncomfortable warmth centered in her chest; the student pounded it and shook her head, frowning and wondering about the sudden feeling.

She was about to take a step but stopped suddenly. Her pocket began to vibrate while a trumpet tune played. Chione drew out a dusk-blue smart phone and put away her confusion when she heard the voice over the unknown caller id. "Oh, it's you."

"Another tower's been activated. The scanner says the ice sector. Has anything been happening at the school?"

"No." Chione stole a glance back at the gates, then widened eyes. "Er… yes, actually. There is one tiny thing."

Brilliant red eye symbols stared at her from the entranceway, jolting in up and down or left and right directions from where the iris should be. They flickered frequently, disappearing to show the metal of the monster's sockets. A gargoyle statue stood in the way from Chione's destination, growling, holding a defensive stance. Its metal body creaked as the material inside brushed against each other, giving a grinding sound that pierced ears. The teeth exposed were the molars of hunting dogs.

Silas kept asking the nature of the threat, but Chione answered with a, "It's nothing too serious; I'll be there soon."

The phone call ended. The monster stared at her, ever ready. Chione strengthened her legs and watched as the creature twitched. Silence lingered between the two beings. To the girl, the atmosphere had been tainted with copper and iron odors, making her tongue taste its body though she had not touched it. She sensed the adrenaline pumping fast into her bloodstream, rising both nervousness and bravery.

The girl ran to the left, and the gargoyle came for her – though in a slow shuffle. She smirked. Chione took advantage of its dash by rushing to the other side, heading for the gate. When it saw the deception in her plan, the metallic monster tried to stop its momentum as dirt clouds kicked up from under its feet. It grunted in anger, watching the cap-wearing student succeed in escaping.

Chione breathed out happiness and turned to see her adversary, but she had twisted her victory into surprise. "Lynette!" she called out while jogging backwards into the forest, ceasing footwork after hitting a tree.

The blond was left with the gargoyle, which seemed to have shifted targets. Lynette showed anxiety, clenching her teeth hard and holding balled-up fists near her chest. The monster took steps towards her, growling low, making the girl back away. She ignored Chione's shouts to run back to the school, standing at her spot unless the statue advanced on her. "Stifle…" Her voice had gone down to a trembling whisper. Lynette's blue orbs focused on the gargoyle creeping its way to her.

Suddenly, the monster rushed at her; and, out of reaction, the blond screamed and ran to the gate, missing a tripping blow, coming to the black-haired girl. She was already out of breath when she got close. "T-That monster tried to hurt me! W-W-What's wrong with it?"

Chione saw the gargoyle turn back around to them. She clenched her teeth. "It wants me. You have to go back."

"What? After all that trouble of running to you, I have to go back past that nasty thing?" Lynette had reddened up from the strain. "Forget it! I'm not doing that!"

The gargoyle was walking to them.

"Just my luck." Chione gave a serious look to Lynette. "Look. If you want to make yourself useful, you either go back or come with me." She shifted herself in the factory's direction. "But coming with me will mean more danger like this. Possibly danger like this every single day for the rest of your life. It's up to you."

Lynette watched as the shorter girl made the distance between her and the school bigger. Her mind made a decision as the monster was stomping to her. "Wait! Wait for me!" She ran after Chione.

* * *

"That sewer was nasssssss-tay! Pew!" The girls clamored out of the manhole. Lynette took in deep amounts of air – almost gasping. "Please tell me we don't ever have to go through that again. I'm going to cry if you do."

Chione popped out last, inhaling a good chunk with the blond. "It's about the only way I know how to get to the factory easily. No kidding about the smell, though. I'll agree with you on that." She slid the cover with her foot, and sighed. "Looks like we have bigger things to worry about than the sewers. Are you ready for another sprint?"

Another gargoyle guarded the factory entrance, just as menacing-looking as its sibling. It also took on the defensive stance, though it was ready to leap any moment.

Whine. "Not this againnnn!"

"You can always go back, you know."

Lynette swatted the air. "**Forget it**! I'm not going to be a damsel-in-distress!"

Snort. "Suit yourself." Chione pointed at the monster but was looking at the blond. "I go straight and you run around to the side. Follow my lead."

When she was given a nod of agreement, the smaller girl went full throttle towards the monster, Lynette running shortly behind. This gargoyle did not move an inch, but its head and front leg were prepared to do some damage to the two. Chione was closing in quick on the statue, noting its jerks, and waited for the creature to move a slight bit forward before leaping. Her foot landed on its head, and she did another short jump; however, her landing was poor, tripping and rolling on the other side, hearing the monster's roar a distance away. She felt pricks of stings all over her body and the indentations of stuck stone pieces; but, Lynette had urged her to come while dragging Chione by the arm, further from the monster.

Chione was limping a little, yet the minor defect did not halt her from riding the rope down to the lower floor. Lynette knit her brows up, hesitant. The braver of the two shouted for the other to get going; and, with another nod, the blond reached for a twine and slid to the same ground.

They entered the elevator, Chione punching the numbers and hitting the up button. "Why did you follow me?" she asked Lynette during the ride.

Lynette was looking away with her right hand gripping the left arm at the elbow. "Why should I not follow you? I just wanted to."

Sigh. "You're a poor excuse of a liar."

"You're just so cool…"

Chione's eyes grew, and she found herself staring at Lynette in total disbelieve. "What?"

The other girl now turned her attention to the floor. "You know the Royal Flowers? We're the most popular girls at Kadic Academy." Now her gaze fell on Chione. "We weren't always that way, though. We were the best of friends in elementary school – who just happened to be the prettiest and caught all the guys' eyes." Laugh. "But, I have to be honest, the Duchess is tired. She's tired of having to spend all of her money on clothes and make-up, and she's tired of friends that seemed to stop caring a long time ago." A smile formed on her face. "You were the new girl; you probably didn't know me. I thought I could make a fresh start. No more Royal Flowers for Duchess Lynette. Just a simple girl." Her hands placed themselves on her waist. "You are also pretty cool and brave. I've always wanted to be like that." The smile inverted. "But… You don't seem to like me."

Chione returned to normalcy. She twitched a frown while saying, "Well, I don't." She cleared herself as the other person gawked. "But that doesn't mean you can't change my opinion. It's a first impression, and nothing more than that."

Lynette opened her mouth to continue the conversation, but noiseless awe slipped out. She stayed and focused on the boy getting off of the seat. She turned to Chione, blinking. "You didn't tell me you knew hot guys!" A finger wagged at the Chione, who was rolling eyes. "It's no wonder you were being so secretive. I wouldn't want to share him myself!" Giggles ensued.

Silas gave a condescending look at Chione. "Well now, I'm rather disappointed in you, Ms. I-Don't-Want-Others. Telling me you don't want other people involved in our little shindig." His face contorted to pleasant humor with Lynette. "But I'm also glad you brought someone so pretty. Nice catch – and nice taste." He was smiling a big smile. "The name's Silas. We don't have much time to explain, but I assume Chione recruited you to help us."

"Right. Recruit…" Chione trailed off in a mumble, pressing a button following Silas entering the elevator.

"It was something along those lines." Lynette nodded with a fierce grin. "Duchess Lynette is ready to help out in any way she can. This, she promises to the both of you! Send her straight into the battlefield if you must!"

The black-haired people said, "Oh great," at the same time, Chione's less enthusiastic than Silas'.

Silas did not bother to turn around to the scanners presenting themselves. He said coolly, "Hop into one of these babies and be brave. We'll need every ounce of power you can give us."

* * *

The three Lyoko warriors materialized on blue and white ground. Life that could be found in the forest sector's trees was gone in the frozen lands, replacing green vividness for the cold embrace of ice caps and blocky snow. Many of the landforms were polygonal, possessing sharp edges and a singular color. In the far distance were arches or caverns. From where the group stood, water was little-to-none available, whereas the forest sector had an entire informational sea under their feet. The ice crunched as someone took a step, giving the illusion of compacting frost; however, the chill to be assumed in the air was omitted, leaving a strange feeling of void.

Chione observed the scenery, stern eyes in her sockets. "Man. It's so dull compared to the forest sector. Definitely not as eye-catching. So, which way are we going?"

Silence.

"Hello?" She made a 180, and then sighed. "Another person that is dressed better than me. Why am I not surprised?"

Silas was staring, dumbfounded. The words that came out of his mouth were slow and seemingly unconscious. "Yeah… but she's rocking out that suit…"

Lynette bore a smug look on her face as the others checked out her attire. Everything was devoid of color for her. As though her clothes were uncaringly dumped in vaults of black, her hair shone more brilliantly in contrast to her clothing. She was sporting military-style clothing, consisting of a jacket, gloves, pants, and boots. Rather than armor, many belts wrapped at her abdomen, buckles latched straight down from the chest to waist like buttons. Soaring golden falcons on patches were stitched on both sleeves of the jacket, fierce and ready to kill. A device was attached on her back underneath a long French braid reaching to the knees, tied by a white ribbon; with the appearance like a backpack replacing the zippers for a round switch in the center, it seemed to be a machine of sorts.

The new warrior gave an amused look at her companions, and giggled. "There's a real knight in my presence, and then there's the… deformed monster princess." She ceased the laughter when she received a death glare from Chione. "I'm only kidding! That wouldn't be how a real princess dresses anyways." Lynette put on an endearing, yet guilty smile. "I'm really sorry. I really am. I didn't think you would be that sore about it."

Chione stole a glance at Silas, furrowed her brows deeper as the red-armored knight continued to gaze, and turned back in the direction they were initially facing earlier. "…Whatever. It doesn't matter if you're sorry." The girl hit the boy hard with a nudge, bringing him back to his senses. "Tower. We need to deactivate it. Remember? Which way, Casanova?"

Silas rubbed at the spot, frowning. "Um. That-away. Somewhere in that general direction."

The trio sped off across the icy plains, tackling the poor blue-white shades by focusing on the goal. To her disappointment, Chione was treading behind even the new warrior. Lynette had to bring up questions. "So, like, those monster things, they're created by the towers, um, you say, 'activating'?"

The male nodded. "The activation of these towers brings some real-world trouble. The tremors yesterday were the same deal."

Her voice piped up. "No way! That was some totally scary stuff, too!" Laugh. "I'm so glad I followed Chione, then. Say, Chione, how are you doing back there?"

No response.

"C-Chione? You're not still mad about that comment, are you? Because I'm extremely sorry if that bothered you."

Further silence.

Silas and Lynette halted and whisked their heads back. Just a millisecond later, they saw a flash of light-blue jet past them. The two stayed for a moment, watching the blur go farther, and ran after it. "Chione!" Silas called out. "Hey! Wait for us!"

The shorter girl twisted her head around and gave her comrades a daring smirk behind whipping hair. She was sliding across the field so fast that the environment was a blur. "Sorry. There's only room for one." She gained momentum on the makeshift ice board akin to increasing speed on a skateboard. She could hear Silas' and Lynette's crunching footsteps become softer, no more than the wind wails whooshing near her ears.

Silas called out for Chione again. She shouted for him to stop and calm himself but soon was shoved off the board by a blast. She rolled and slid, inadvertently missing more firing attempts. Brown eyes fell on the monsters, more of the roach critters and – now – walking blocks with the symbols – painted on protruding orbs – on each face, except the top and bottom. Much like the bug-type machines, the blocks had four legs – yet their limbs were red and organic-like. Their sandy-brown bodies appeared to be indestructible to slashes and blunt forces. The tops had plus mark indentations through the entire face, creating four squares at the corners.

Lasers burst when one eye would charge to a burning red color. Chione, despite having stopped, went back to rolling, driven to dodge possibly injuries. Her companions were still a ways distant, so the girl thought fast, improvising under pressure. She stared straight at the roaches and blocks; the girl started to advance slow as an army at the monsters, deflecting beams with right arm swings, gritting teeth all the while. Chione remained in constant concentration as a roach exploded, a lance piercing straight through its body.

The knight's brows arched upwards, a frown creased on his face. Monsters became obstacles for him to retrieve his cast lance, which had stopped at the block's feet. A couple enemies gazed at Silas with major interest, prepared to shoot the warrior. His eyes trembled, but he was hardening his resolve. "Got no other choice," he mumbled while taking a step back. The gazing creatures buckled their metallic joints and were charging lasers. Silas could not take back the running he was doing, going against the odds of missing the lasers in a frantic dash. Red light somehow failed touching him. His approach to them brought out a deep wish for great heights, to be able to leap across the monsters with superb ease. Silas invested all resources to his legs and feet; and, with one laser about to hit him, the boy jumped as high as he could. The male found himself screaming in fear mixed with surprise; Silas was fifteen feet above the ground, flailing, twisting in the air at tremendous speed.

The newest member had not moved a baby step since Silas ran off. Lynette shook at the creatures staring at her, ignoring Chione's advances to the enemy and Silas' falling on the ground and retrieving his weapon. Another monster was killed, the boy stabbing while the enemy was not looking. Shots went for her, and the blond let the attacks come, knocking her to the ground. Chione yelled at the other female to get a move on; and, with a nod, Lynette was back to reality and on her feet. She looked on her being and instantly reached for a weapon strapped on her waist. "W-What am I supposed to with this?" Lynette gawked at her weapon: a small-headed axe with a long, wooden shaft. "What am _I_ supposed to do with this?" She suffered another hit, this time in the stomach. Her face scrunched in raw anger. "Ohhh! Just die, you ugly things!" Lynette screamed while throwing the axe like a boomerang. A light blinked at the wood end; the axe curved toward the enemies and managed to strike a couple before wanting to come back to her. The blond ducked but squealed as the weapon bent back at her.

"Well if that isn't impressive," Chione said, watching Lynette's progress, now finally in acceptable range of the enemy. The two the axe struck exploded into parts; and, an impressed smile forced itself on the dark-haired girl's lips. It did not last long, though, when Lynette dodged her own weapon, not foreseeing the return trip, and was devirtualized by her own weapon. "Well if that wasn't stupid." Sigh. The girl turned attention to the block, glaring and lifting her glowing human hand. Before she could do her attack, the block fired a streaming blue laser at her legs, which froze them in ice. Instead of worrying, Chione smirked and swung her arm fast as a blade strike. The ground formed a sharp shard of ice, acting as her sword, that sliced perfectly through the block's body and destroying the adversary. With the demonic arm, she smashed through the trapping freeze effect on her lower limbs without breaking a sweat. In her moment of pride, she was about to get hit by the last roach, only to be protected by the finishing blow by Silas.

Silas approached Chione, smiling a small one. "I see you are mastering what your avatar is meant for in battle."

Chione looked at her right hand, giving a smirk back. "I suppose you could say that. Let's not talk now, though."

Nod. "Mind whipping us something to get there quick?"

The girl's left hand glowed blue again, bringing forth icy snowboards for each of them. They two started off in unison, sliding their way across the arctic lands for the tower.

* * *

"That was fun – but dangerous." Lynette spoke out, frowning with arms crossed. "I can't believe that I – in my stupidity – basically killed myself with that axe." She let out a tearful sigh. "Don't you guys think it's stupid? I think it's stupid. And I was screaming like a little girl."

Chione answered, with nonchalant feeling, "You are a girl, though."

"-Besides that point," Silas said, interjecting the dark-haired girl's cold comment, "You'll get better, Lynette. I swear it." He pointed to Chione and himself, giving a reassuring grin. "This was only our third time in Lyoko. First time, we were devirtualized easily." His eyes turned away from the girls and towards the module. "Anyways. Back on topic: about the supercomputer. I definitely need to look into it some more. As you suggested, Chione, we could use the Return to the Past feature in case we really mess up. However…" Silas trailed off, recollecting what he wanted to say in the most accurate words, and then continuing: "There were traces of past profiles – like ours – in the records. If there's one thing I can say about this is that I wouldn't be surprised if those past kids used that function themselves."

Chione widened her eyes. "So you think that…"

Silas nodded. "I believe that this program wouldn't affect those that have entered the scanners; and, if that's so, if we tried it…"

"Dang." Chione shook her head. "It's a good risk, but we might be involving those guys…"

"Exactly." Silas turned to Lynette with a serious look on his face. "And what about you? Your friends…"

Lynette blinked and then scoffed. "Oh, please! My girl friends? _What_ girl friends?" She took a glance from Chione prior to looking back at Silas. " 'Queenie' and 'Countess' throw all my Euros down the drain! I don't get a good portion of money to myself; it has to be spent on the newest fashion and make-up." Determined smile. "_Pleeeeease_. I have been thinking of ditching my gals for the longest time. It was Chione here that gave me the courage to finally think about doing it – when we get back to school." Her resolve softened to a gentle glow. "I… I want to be in your group; I swear to not tell anyone." Her right hand balled into a fist at her side. "And to officially declare 'Duchess' Lynette dropping the lifestyle of fame and glamour, I won't refer to myself as 'Duchess' anymore."

Chione and Silas blinked.

Bigger smile. "And from now on, I want to be known as 'Lyn'."

* * *

"I want out of this group of ours, girls." Lynette hovered over two female students at a lunchroom table, a scowling expression on her face and her arms folded. She had taken on a powerful stance demanding attention. The two looked at her with their fullest though bewildered attention. "I've so tired of being here; it doesn't seem you girls care about our friendship anymore; I spend **all** my money on our clothes and cosmetics, and I have gone through a couple of my brothers' birthdays not giving them anything! At first, I didn't mind at all, but this has gone far too long!" The blond stomped her foot. "I've had it! I've absolutely had it! I'm going, and there is nothing left for you two to say that could possibly make me stay. That's final."

One girl stared at her, incredulously. "…We didn't exactly make you stay, ya know, Duch-Duch." Laugh. "If you wanted to go, you should have just done so."

Pout. Lynette's face crimsoned. "Lies! Total lies!"

The other girl now responded, with the same humor, "We didn't, Lyn-tet. Of course we liked our little group – and we have grown distant over the years – but there wasn't anything holding you. In fact, I think it was more beneficial."

The blond now was red as an apple. "And why would you say that?"

A girl pointed to across the room. "Because we now get to see that."

Chione's eyes were twitching in scorn. Surrounding her as she was putting food into her bag were three males looking down on her. The teenagers looked slightly older, bearing a stronger build than most of the male student population.

The dark-haired girl glared at the blond, sending her death waves.

Lyn blinked at the scene, and then gritted her teeth, frowning. "The Lynette Adoration Group… Oh bother." Nervous, soft laugh.

* * *

**_Disclaimer_**_: I do not, in any way, shape, or form, own Code Lyoko, for that idea belongs to Moonscoop. Any of the characters, plot elements, story elements, and sources from the original Code Lyoko show belong to Moonscoop. I, however, claim right to any characters and story/plot elements that are being introduced into the story as new ideas/absent from the original source material._


	3. Chapter 3: Secret Recruitment

_Chapter 3_ – **Secret Recruitment**

At the factory's computer room, Silas was typing away at the keyboard, bringing back up numerous information and record documents. He scribbled words on a notepad, focused, tensing from the light straining his eyes. Other than the computer sounds and the tapping on keys, there was nothing or no one to share company with the black-haired teenager. The eerie presence of silence invited in a chill in the air, weighing heavy on Silas' shoulders. The senses of smell and taste were completely lacking in the room.

With the absence of humans, Silas felt uncomfortable. He stopped information-gathering and brought up a video window. The same reporter came out with the account of the gargoyles that had mysteriously disappeared a week ago from an elderly welder's house. Both statues had been recovered in a forest; no evidence of fingerprints and any foreign material suggested a simple case of theft. The old man, however, was put on the report and stated that as long as his work was not damaged in any way, he was willing to forgive.

Silas was smirking. "I'll just say, dear sir: it wasn't easy moving that one statue into the forest." The reporter then shifted to another piece of news, stating today's exact date in his report. Silas frowned, wiping away humor. His ears stopped sending him what the reporter was saying, Silas retreating to his own world. He put aside the notepad and pen and dug into his pants pocket, bearing sorrow on his face. His hand drew out a leather wallet, and Silas flipped it open. Cards were slid into compartments, with bills and coins snuggly fit into the largest slot. In a clear holder was an identification card, showing off a smiling Silas looking straight and bold. The card was taken out and inspected under the light. Personal information was printed; Silas ignored the finer details for the words at the bottom.

The card stated he was a student at a school across town. It also said that Silas was a ninth grader.

Silas snapped the card in half and put the two pieces in his pocket along with the wallet. Now, a great pain concentrated in his chest, almost enough to suffocate him on an emotional level. He exited out of the report window and, unconsciously, slipped on the headset, Chione's Lyoko profile popping on the screen.

Silas' mumbling for the girl to pick up was a broken record statement, but he ceased as he was answered. He greeted back, now with a relaxed smile. "I'm pretty lonely here." His tone was calm, in contrast to his malaise. "You can hate people, but I can't stand not talking to anyone for a while."

"Oh gosh. Are you for real? I don't exactly hate people." Silas could hear birds chirping in the background. "I was about to go to our place anyways. You really couldn't wait till then?"

Shrug. "What can I say? I'm a people's guy."

"You're an AI. A people's AI."

He blinked, taking the words in. He was asked if he was still on the line as his teeth bit his lip in a soft fashion. "Right. But… AIs have emotions. This one does; and, can you prove that they don't? I'm the only one you have."

Her voice was devoid of emotion. "I suppose you're right. Oh, by the way…" There was a pause, before she continued with an apology. "Sorry. I had these guys on my tail. Anyways, you know that you need some new clothes."

Silas checked himself, laughing. "You said that when we came out of the scanners the first time, too. My, my, are you really concerned about how I dress? I didn't think you would be such a fashion-conscious person – even more than Lyn."

Silence. A cough came through the call. "Oh, uh… I just thought you would look better in clothes of our century."

"Hey! What's that supposed to mean? Mean girl." Silas snorted in amusement. "Say, though, I have a bit more information that is quite interesting – if I could access them at all." He took in a deep breath, as the quiescence possibly confused Chione. "I didn't tell any of you yet; I've been keeping them since three-to-four days ago. I came across some encrypted files, marked as 'video diaries'. There are two sets, each from different time periods from the last recording. They were in different folders. I don't know what the meaning of the set separation is – neither can I assume – but if I can unlock them, I'm so certain that there is great information on Lyoko and X.A.N.A. we can take for advantage."

Chione's tone had lightened up. "That sounds awesome, but what do you mean them being 'encrypted'?"

Sigh. "Locked. The key's been thrown away, and we need to forge a new one by using many programs. There's no way to retrieve the original key." Silas clicked on folders, bringing up the two mentioned sets. "But, as I've said, I'm not the greatest programmer. In fact, I have just about as much as skill as you. Mm, give or take." Silas gulped, knowing what he was about to say next was sure to reap a negative reaction, but he had mustered enough courage to go ahead. "I need a programmer – even a genius. There're many things I want him to do which I'm not capable for. Chione-"

"No." Her disagreement shot fast and was assured.

Silas inhaled deep, keeping check of emotions. "Chione, this is the last time I'm asking for someone. After this, recruitment is optional. Why are you always so against this? You can do everything else – as far as I've seen in this short while of knowing you – but this. You'd rather push yourself to danger but this."

Chione was quick to answer. "I just don't want any more people on this secret. Is that so hard to understand?"

"Yes, actually, it is." Sarcasm dripped in as Silas frowned. "It's like as though you would rather kill yourself than be with others."

Dead air.

"Well? What's the matter now? Cat got your tongue?"

Another pause followed before the girl said anything back, now speaking softer. "I just… don't like people." A breath got caught in the receiver, coming out as fuzz on the other end. "It's complicated."

Calming air was snorted out of his nose. Silas tried to be amicable but still pressing. "Just one more. I'm begging you. One more and I'm done unless we really have to. I promise." His ears perked as breathing continued on the other line. The black-haired male lowered his voice. "I'm asking you because, in a way, we're like partners that co-founded this thing. You and I, we're the masters of Lyoko. If I really wanted to get someone, I could have done it without your permission." He was smiling. "It would have been a heck of a lot easier, on my behalf. We're buds, right? We ask each other things like this."

"…Buds…"

Nod. "Yeah, buds. We may have known each other for a short while; but, you and I, we have a connection, I believe. Buds." Silas replaced any tension for understanding, nodding slightly to himself. "You know, I understand if you don't want to go through this. Not trying to pressure you."

"But you sure sound like you're pressuring me." Sigh. "Oh, whatever. I don't care anymore."

"Great!" The boy beamed, earning victory. "Thanks a bunch, Chione."

"Oh, no. You're not entirely off the hook."

Tilt of the head. "Now what?"

"I want a deal out of this. Simply."

Laugh. "Well, I'm willing to negotiate. What do you want for a new team member? A trip to the moon? A chance to ride some dolphins?" He snickered as he heard groaning.

"Don't be so stupid. Here's what I want: we get you clothes and you enroll yourself to the school."

Silas widened eyes. The surprise and unknown way to take the proposal was very apparent in his voice, somewhat higher than usual and hesitant. "Why would you ask those things? Why not something like – I don't know – a rare CD? Or even to humiliate myself to a group in some ridiculous way? In fact, Chione, if I had to say so myself," his tone now had undergone a philosophical interpretation, "this is more beneficial for me than it is for you."

Snort. "Then what I'm asking for is more acceptable to you. You'll be able to accept my conditions easily." Chione chuckled once. "I don't want anything rare – or even a cheap laugh." She whispered to a nearly deaf murmur, "I want a friend over here; I want someone… I can feel safe with." While her normal way of expression bordered on the descriptive word of 'heartless', she had articulated her reason sounding tenfold more serious – even becoming lonely.

Blink. He lids closed halfway, covering a part of his blue irises. He let the conversation drop into an abyss momentarily, with the girl not helping to escape the awkward silence. Silas was presented with a moral decision, each having their own negative consequence; and, after sighing, he had decided on the lesser of the two evils. "If I agree to this compromise, would you at least help me with the arrangements? It's one thing to try to bring in a friend from another school; it's another thing to try to bring in something not human with no records and existence to a very human-populated environment." He was quite shocked at the reception he got from the other end.

"Okay!- I mean, okay." Chione cleared her throat, reverting to steel composure. "If you can hack and rip-off official document paper and formats, I can forge signatures and make you presentable for the principal. It'll be a cinch." Her voice acquired a jeering confidence as she continued, words spilling out uncharacteristically for the girl. "You'll be needing medical records, education scores, a birth certificate, and a family relations paper. My signatures will make sure you get the okay from your, quote-en-quote, 'parents' and 'guardians'. If I can get a word in with the principal, I'm sure I can convince him that you won't need to bring your 'parents' in. I'll say that you're a pen pal of mine from the other side of France or whatever, fluff the conversation up, and that'll do it. What do you think?"

Silas' mind had gone blank during the whole explanation, fixated on a single observation. Mixed feelings paralyzed his tongue, restricted to gulping and thinking. As time went at a snail's pace, the confliction in his chest intensified to pain, attempting to make a quick decision when Chione called for him to answer and repeated upon not receiving a confirmation. His hand combed through his hair, getting furious. Silas gritting his teeth with his eyes closed helped nothing; he still needed to make up his mind.

Chione asked for the fourth time before Silas finally gave in and threw out his notion. "You… are really happy about this."

A shudder crept into her reply. "Is that… Is that a bad thing?"

Shake of the head. "Not exactly. It's just that you're opening up to me a whole lot more. You are happy – and that's understandable if you want a good friend; but, at the same time, coming from you, this is… a huge jump – almost a turn face, like you really wanted this from the beginning. You're so excited." He could sense awkwardness from the other side and, on an impulse, forced out half-hearted laughter. "Well, that's great! I'm happy as well. In fact, I'm super happy! I'll get to learn about the human world and be closer to my comrades." Silas ignored a sigh of relief transmitted through the call. "I'm sure I'm going to learn a lot – especially with you, Chione." His eyes grew, inviting in friendly light. "Are you anywhere near the factory now?"

"I'm about to use the ropes. Why?"

He patted his stomach, and let out a wheeze of a gasp. "Not only am I starving, but I was thinking that we could make some flyers. I'll tell you the rest of the details when you get to the computer room. Know that I need your creativity for this. Ciao."

Silas ended the call in a flash. When the headset was slipped off and dropped dramatically onto the keyboard, the boy put his forehead on the console, low groaning vibrating from the throat. The antagonistic feelings had stayed with him – only to have ripened into concentrated negative emotions directed towards himself. "It's not her fault; it's not her fault," he mumbled, keeping the moaning tone. He saw his reflection off the monitor, darkened and translucent to allow the background to be shown as well, and had an urge to scratch at his face.  
Before the elevator could open, the boy said, induced with spite, "It's not her fault that you're a likable guy." Glare. "That's exactly how you're putting yourself up to be."

* * *

For lunch the next day, Chione had to toughen her stomach. Against the onslaught of badly-mixed odors, the shorter girl held in her breaths long and took in air short; and, even with the strained effort, she was not able to resist feeling the least bit sick.

The two girls went around the cafeteria, passing out flyers. Many students had looked at them with mild confusion and interest; the rest had laughed or honestly considered the contents on the page. From the corners of their eyes, a minority had fed the trashcans with their hard work. Some talk had started to amass and harvest rumors concerning reasons behind the advertising – and including one of the most popular girls' random friendship with a new student.

Lyn had been smiling the entire time, being completely amiable to people she passed out her paper to. Her face was hurting, but her perseverance was grateful to keep up the pep. "It's been a little over a week and people still can't believe we're buddies, Chio," she said near the Chione.

Chione glanced over at Lyn, narrowed her eyes, and went back to work, with a serious snort. "When are you going to stop calling me 'Chio'? And we're not 'buddies'. I'd think the same thing as them if I wasn't passing out these darn things."

Scoff. "Chio, Chio, Chio. Tsk, tsk." Lyn placed her stack on a table and turned around to face her partner. "If we're going to get someone soon, you'll need to be more cooperative! Instead of treating me like a teammate, it would go a lot faster if we were on a friendly basis." She returned to grinning and work. "Don't take this as a meaningless task. Make it an adventure!" The longer-haired girl took her voice up a notch, transforming her normally higher pitch for a chime-like tone. "A knight and the fighter princess, duking it out with the evil monsters of another universe!"

A stack of flyers were placed on a table. Brown orbs leered at the wall in front, Chione having replaced her somber expression for a face of silent irritation. She thought over how she could not work under the conditions.

The cheerier one prattled on, unaware of her coworker's halt in progress. "Out of our video game came a devilishly-handsome fellow, having powers beyond our comprehension. Despite being powerful, he can't do everything by himself. He needs us, and we need him. It's a simple bond, Chio; and, by passing out these – as I would like to call – 'invitations', we shall recruit a new ally to our forces." Lyn twirled around to look at Chione again. "Don't you think that's-" Any sign of a sunny disposition flushed away in an instant, leaving behind a narrowing of blue eyes and furrowing of brows – all accompanied by a displeased frown.

When she had her fill of actually listening to the blond companion, Chione went back to passing out flyers, ignoring Lyn. At the moment Lyn turned around, the black-haired girl was handing a paper to Lukas by sliding it onto his table. Bewildered, he stuttered as he expressed gratitude and was reaching over to the flyer.

Lyn rushed to the table and, quick as a hare, slammed her own paper on top of Chione's, emphasizing the moment with a, "Ha!" Chione and Lukas snapped their heads at the blond, blinking and – in the other girl's case – raising a brow. The peppy teen was laughing off the moment, though sounding dry in humor. "Lukas, you should totally come to the audition. We'd love to have you around."

Lukas lowered his green eyes to the paper, scratching his wide nose while reading. "A-A programmer? But I don't know why you are coming to me for this…"

"Because we could," Chione stated with her blunt honesty.

Lyn gave the girl a nudge, stern in face. "That's no way to ring in people! That's also not a way to treat Lukas. You should give people respect and kindness; they'll be more likely to come."

Chione's eyes rolled, and then she was glaring. "Bite me."

"So!" The lightest-haired teen propped her elbow on Lukas' table and rested her head on her hand while curving her back. "What do you say? Are you coming, Lukas? I think you would be a great person to hang out with if you get picked."

"W-Well… I don't know. I mean, thank you for the chance, but I'm not sure how I'm going to help at all." He looked at the two, brows curved up and lips pressed hard into a frown. "I wouldn't be able to support whatever it is you two need. This also doesn't state a time."

"Come on." Chione, now arms crossed, averted attention onto Lyn with an air of annoyed doubt. "I don't think he's going to be that useful if he criticizes his own skills."

Lyn plastered on a saddened face.

"S-Stifle," Lukas spoke up, minimizing his voice to an even smaller pitch. "How have you been feeling? Any better since we last met?"

Both girls widened eyes, but Chione reverted to her normal sour face when she answered. "Better. I suppose."

"You… suppose?"

Chione was starting to smirk and placed a hand on her waist. "I suppose. Without a programmer, we've been working day and night on our project." She ignored her partner's questioning, keeping eyes on the boy, who was gradually showing signs of worry. "I told you before that I got nauseous in here; now, I get tired after a trip. Sometimes dizzy." She rubbed the muscles of her arm. "Physical fatigue, tiredness, a queasiness after an hour or two of work."

Lukas brought himself closer to Chione. "You should really go see Yolande. She'd be able to help."

She shook her head. "She wouldn't be able to understand. There's nothing out there like it."

"I-I'm sure there is. You just-"

"No. There is nothing like it. I can't sleep. I feel way too happy for some reason. Yolande wouldn't be able to understand what we do. She might call us crazy."

The boy flit his eyes back and forth between Chione and the paper. He gave a nod. "I-I'll see what I can do; though, please consider going to see Yolande soon. She's a really nice lady that would be able to suggest a whole bunch of stuff for you."

Chione displayed an honest smile that appreciated the concern. "Thanks a bunch, man. See you soon?"

Small nod. "See you later, Stifle, Lyn."

The girls departed from the brunette teen, close to each other while passing out the rest of their loads. Out of Lukas' earshot, the blond girl whispered to the dark-haired one, wondering the intention behind Chione's stretch of truth. After the smaller student said that that was how she rung in people, they did not talk anymore.

* * *

Lights in the dorm hallways illuminated brilliantly, warding off the coming darkness outside. When the sun was out, the dorms would be white as vanilla, countered by the sharp contrast of the dark green carpets patterned by gold diamonds. Shadows were cast along the floor, enveloping the quadrilateral design, and were moving as voices could be heard on the third floor. A small group of people had conveniently lined themselves up against the wall across from a door, talking amongst each other quietly about the taped sign. "Please wait until being called," was scrawled on paper slapped onto the entranceway. People were waiting anxiously for the first call; and, in their antsy patience, students were looking around the hallway, only to turn around to another person and ask if they had just seen a pair of blue eyes and locks of black hair around the corner.

Silas ducked back after stealing a glance at the waiting individuals, beads of sweat rolling down his face steadily. His chest went up and down as a storm-produced ocean wave, fast and deep. His legs felt like they were on fire, and the boy wanted to collapse on the floor. The gripping stiffness stressed his lower limbs.

His vision fell on his new clothes. Blue defined him. Clutching tight on his upper torso was a dusky – almost black – blue collarless shirt with white cuffs; the boy had rolled the long sleeves up to his elbow. A lighter shade was for his khakis, reaching to his ankles. To his meager happiness, the comfort of white sneakers supported his feet. Silas went for his neck, touching cool metal against his skin, and observed the trinket of a real black feather on a necklace of silver chain. He stroked its soft texture and then let go to hang on his chest.

A gulp slithered down his throat, providing little hydration to his parched mouth. The messy-haired boy took in one last breath before stepping out into plain view of the crowd. Individuals that were facing in his direction widened their eyes, which led to those they were mingling with to turn around and do the same. The boys were quick to go back to their conversations while the girls made various noises and whispered giggles. Silas sensed his face getting hot when he was walking past the people, knowing the ladies' eyes were following him. If it were not for his legs, he would have said that all the fire in the world had been thrown into his face. Mirth rose from his heart, but he also felt an uncomfortable air compressing him. His feet kept him moving to the door.

Silas knocked two taps. A blue eye greeted him when the entrance was opened to a crack. He was ushered inside with utmost friendliness, which escalated the noise level of the whispers. Silas' eyes grew as he absorbed the environment visually. There were a couple posters hung on the walls depicting music bands – one being the formerly-popular Subdigitals – above the bed. Straight across from Silas was a desk coupled with a table lamp. Spotted in the corner, a large bag sat alone; its swelled body suggested being full. The room was clear of litter – or even signs of being occupied. Only the posters and the bag prevented the space from being called vacant and ready to be moved in from another student. Subtle hints of a fragrance helped a slight bit to ease the emptiness, but it was negligible at best.

Silas shut the door and stepped forward, the girls on the bed watching him with mellow interest. "So," he broke the quiet while looking around more, "whose awfully-empty pad is this?"

Chione raised a hand. "Mine. I didn't bother to unpack."

Lyn turned to her. "Why? You were planning to study here, weren't you? They don't take away your room during the summer or winter."

"With my record of being kicked out of two schools, I didn't think I would last that long here," the cap-wearing girl curtly answered, earning the big eyes of her comrades. She blinked in blankness. "What? They just kicked me out for being a major disturbance. Nothing illegal."

"Okay." Silas sat himself next to Chione, smiling. "We can all share our life stories later." He turned his head to her. "Do you have everything you said you had?"

She unzipped the backpack near her feet and pulled out a yellow laptop. Opening the machine brought life onto its screen, directing the trio to a desktop. Chione ignored the contorted expressions of Silas and Lyn upon seeing the background, a collection of tulip poplar flowers floating on water. All sorts of icons were organized neatly on the left, and she scrolled the mouse over a few shortcuts. "These are what you asked for. I already cleared out stuff that was old and unnecessary." She continued to gaze at her screen as her face shifted to that of being irked. "Why are you two looking at me like that?"

"Do you… like yellow?" asked Lyn, before she changed her voice to nervousness. "I mean! There's nothing wrong with liking yellow! Haha! I just didn't think you would! It's so sunny and joyful, unlike you!- Oops!" She covered her mouth, shivering as she received a glare.

Silas shrugged. "Flowers were the last thing that came to mind about you, was all."

Sigh. "Yeah, well, I like both, okay? Can we just get going with this thing?"

Lyn got off the mattress, flushing with vigor. "Right! Now, remember the criteria we're going for."

Silas straightened his back, having morphed his grin into a smirk. "Personality."

"Skill," mumbled Chione.

"And availability! Right!" Lyn twisted herself towards the door, glowing with happiness. "Icy, Galahad, are we ready to venture forth and recruit ourselves a new member for our party?" She marched forward, not paying attention to her teammates' bewilderment.

Silas cocked his head to the side, utterly confused. " 'Galahad'…?"

Chione blinked and then rolled her eyes. " 'Icy'? Oh, please."

Lyn etched a gigantic joy onto her face, opened the door, and called for the first person. Before returning to her spot, she asked everyone that when their time was over that they would kindly tell the next individual to come inside. Of the three, only Chione was not happy, sighing under her breath.

* * *

The darkness grew. Many of the students that were lined up against the wall switched discussions to their success – or mistakes – during the interviews, boasting confidence or whispering their low likelihood of being selected. Those that had their appointments had made their own congregation away from four others, Lukas among them. His eyes would make frequent glances at his wristwatch, swallowing pent-up energy bound to leave the scene. When not looking at the time, his fingers fidgeted at his sides, constantly clenching and unclenching, or he was readjusting the satchel on his shoulder. The little actions produced minor heat, which only collected to his imagined burning sensation in the thoracic region, especially at the base of the neck.

Everything flared up as a boy leaving the room told him to enter. Though he was nodding furiously, Lukas could not be so passionate inside, a churning stomach feeling kicking badly. He was patting his abdomen during the walk to the door. Another swallow pushed down the anxiety.

Lukas did not waste a second to enter and shut the entrance. His vision locked on the three on the bed, Chione narrowing her eyes to droops, the unknown black-haired male shaking his head to waken himself, and Lyn yawning slightly. The blond nicely told Lukas to take a seat in the chair across from them; and, he complied, still assuring his stomach all the while.

"I'm so sorry, Lukas," Lyn started, showing her pearly whites to him. "We're drained from all the interviews, but we – me especially – are so glad you came!"

Nod. "U-Um… yeah. Glad I could come too… Though I still don't know… uh… what this is for."

Chione blinked her sleepy eyes before saying anything. "If you get picked, you'll know soon enough."

Lukas looked at Chione, frowning. "I trust your word on that. Everyone talks about getting a lot of money if they take on your job, but I just want to help you out, Stifle."

"Why would that be?" the other male spoke up, his voice confident and deep in Lukas' opinion. "Wanting to help us out and not for the money."

Blink. He had to take a few moments to digest the question. "W-Well, uh, you see, I'm more concerned by Stifle's health. He's always been sick every time I meet him in the cafeteria."

"My stomach's just not made for the lunchroom," Chione chimed in. "Forget about it for now. We want to know more about you other than your big worry over my health."

Lyn nudged her hard in the side, earning a grunt of dissatisfaction. Laughter escaped. "Don't pay attention to Icy over here. Icy's a meanie." She fixated herself onto Lukas, sparkling light striking off of them. "Tell us, Lukas, can you keep secrets well?"

"Uh… I-I suppose so?" He glanced to the three, left to right, flitting fast. "I-I mean, I'm pretty good at keeping them. If that's supposed to earn your trust and keep everything under control."

"Right; keep everything under control." Chione rubbed her eyes. "Well, you seem awesome in that category. Hopefully you're honest." She was about to be interrupted by Lukas, but she silenced him with more words. "The others have said the same kind of stuff. I don't think we're buying what you're saying." This time, she was almost interrupted by Lyn. "But I might let that go if you were to tell us a secret right now."

"W-Well… I couldn't do that. That wouldn't be keeping secrets."

The male entered in the conversation again. "How are we supposed to know if you are able to keep one if you won't tell us one?" He turned to the girls, chuckling. "How serious is this guy?"

Lukas looked at the ground, refusing to meet their gazes. "I just can't. I'm sorry."

"Ding, ding ding!" Lyn surprised the brunette. "That part's done with."

"W-What?!" Lukas shook, warily watching Lyn.

"Next up, how is your schedule? We need someone super available. Our business… it's like… a part-time job." Lyn received raised brows from the two black-haired teens. "You have to be devoted to what we do, can't complain, and must be willing to do what we want at all times. If you don't, well, I'm not worried about that from you, Lukas. If that were the case, though," she lowered her eyes to a leer, "let's just say that you wouldn't be liked by us anymore. If this were a video game, you'd have a game over." She gave an accusing finger, which further shook Lukas. "And we don't give second chances here; because, if we did, we ourselves might not get second chances. It's only fair."

Courage mustered itself from her speech, and Lukas started shouting, more energetic than angry. "No! If I were picked, I wouldn't let you guys down! I'd take it seriously if it's a life-and-death thing!" The boy, after the exclamation, was taking deep breaths, earning the amazed attention of the trio, and finally caught what he said, blushing and looking to the ground again. "Oh, um, sorry, I didn't mean…"

Low chuckling followed. "Hey! That's the spirit we need in this group!" The older boy sneaked in laughing glints in his eyes. "Show up to our meetings like that and we might have a force to reckon with." He laughed further as Lukas crimsoned into a scarlet color. "I'm already liking your style. A bit nervous for my tastes – perhaps low self-esteem issues – but still likable." A big smile stretched on his face. "But now, we have to test your actual programming skills. That's the job, after all." He pointed to the laptop on Chione's lap. "Don't have any qualms, do you?"

Lukas shook his head. "Oh, um, actually, I brought my own computer, if that's not a problem." Head shakes were received. "What am I doing?"

"Ohhh, just the best of your ability," Lyn said, shrugging. "Make a robot program. I don't know." Her smile radiated throughout the room. "You'll do great. You're practically a genius in my book."

Lukas executed a couple programs and refused to look at the three while talking. "I'm not a genius, Lyn… I'll definitely give it my best try, though. A robotic program can't be executed on a computer, so I'm thinking something more accessible to laptops."

The rapid typing filled in the void of sound after the conversation was complete. Lukas tapped on the keys furiously, hitting each button at the speed of a freight train. Nothing else mattered for his concentration, completely ignorant to the watching, intrigued gaze of the blond girl. Silas stared at Lukas in strict-business fashion, arms folded and keeping his posture erect. As though she was looking forward to the interview's programming part, Chione had laid herself and went fast asleep, not caring in the slightest the sighs she got from her comrades.

A good twenty minutes past at the moment he waved to the two conscious teens, which prompted Silas to shake Chione awake. Lukas' face was scrunched up in cold seriousness and determination. "I'm finished."

Silas grinned. "Awesome. Bring it here."

Lukas came over to the bed as Chione was blinking and yawning. He set the laptop on Silas' lap, smiling a small smile. "It's nothing special, but it's the best of my ability given the time. Um… It's a program that-"

"Oh, it's a game." He moved the pointer over the icon and raised his finger to click.

"Wait!" Lukas stopped him. "It's… It's not a game." He received hard faces of confusion, but he ignored them for the computer screen. "It's only in the disguise of a game. The icon looks like solitaire, but… but it's a virus – sort of." He placed his attention on the oldest. "If you execute it, it's going to black out the screen. The computer will still run, but you won't be able to see anything. Shutting it down won't fix it." The boy pointed at the icon, ridding his fear with a smile. "It would actually be a simple way to spread it because this 'solitaire' game allows you to post your scores to your friends; yet, in order to show it, they would need the same game. It also gives the players options to change the background, change the card image, among other things. It costs less space than the solitaire that comes with computers. It would be easy to spread." The second he took his eyes off the computer, he went back to nervous shivers, the trio staring at him in shocked fashion.

"Dang." Silas looked back between the laptop and Lukas. "You did that in about half-an-hour? That's incredible. I'm serious – though I do doubt this version of solitaire would be hot stuff, despite all the features." His eyes caught Lukas'. "But you said it was 'sort of' a virus."

Nod. "Haha… well… it spreads, of course, but all it causes is that blackout. It won't ever happen again if the solution is put in. All you would need to do is deactivate the program. Right-clicking brings the screen back, and there will be a feature to 'deactivate blackout'. That's it. It won't happen again unless you execute the program."

Silas had dropped his cheer for keen interest, listening fully to Lukas' explanation. A return of the smile occurred when Lukas had finished speaking. The blue-eyed boy turned his head to the girls and then back to the boy. "Mind giving us a second to discuss?"

Lukas signified no objection and watched, with wavering eyes, the three whisper amongst themselves, sometimes glancing over his way and smiling. He tried to hold his emotions from flushing by throwing attention to the outside. With their part of the world ready to sleep, he could barely make out anything amusing to study. While the group continued their conversation, Lukas latched sight onto movement in a nearby tree, its branches oscillating up and down. He peered through the dark shroud and blinked. An increasing number of kestrels were perching themselves on tree branches, hard-pressed in face, seemingly glaring through the window. Gazing deeper, the boy thought he saw something different in their eyes, extra circles and lines around their pupils; though, when he checked again after blinking, their irises were normal, and he shrugged off ridiculous notions.

His attention was called back into the room when his name was said. Lukas blinked, the three all giving their focus onto him.

Chione spoke first, unenthusiastically, "We've decided that you would be the best – despite not being perfect." She was elbowed on the side.

"Don't say it like that! Sheesh!" Lyn shook her head. "Don't you know how to be nice, Icy?" She clapped her hands once. "We've decided that we're done interviewing people that wouldn't do well and just go straight for the good stuff: you! Because, honestly, everyone else stunk by far comparison." She showed her joy with prominence. "And I can honestly say that I wouldn't have it any other way. I could tell they were terrible liars and wouldn't know how to program a game of pong without extra help."

Silas chuckled. "Way to put it nicer, Lyn. I can't tell if it's better to have brutal honesty or your 'sweeter' version." He stretched out a hand to Lukas, grinning while having his brows sharply depressing. "Welcome to the club, Lukas. It's going to be great working with you."

Lukas shot his vision from the hand and to Silas and then gave a reserved but confident grin, prior to stretching out his own hand to Silas.

Right before they were able to make contact, a loud smash exploded in everyone's ears, drawing their attention to the only window. Cawing mixed into the confusion. Multitudes of kestrels had forced entrance into the room, screeching and making terrible noise. Eye symbols flashed in their sockets. The birds flowed in and suspended themselves above the four teenagers, watching the group in sinister stares. It did not take long for the feathered animals to dive down, shrieking, and attempt scratching the children by use of their beaks and talons.

The four, in return, tried to cover their heads and swat falcons away. They headed for the door despite their attackers distracting them; and, reaching outside, the furious kestrels had scared everyone in the hallways away by their mere presence. No matter the amount of warding swings, the teenagers were receiving too many inflictions due to the number of birds – which seemed to count up to thirty.

Chione gritted her teeth. She had been moving around to avoid pain, but the kestrels would be faster and having no difficulty attacking her from any side. Her voice boomed over the screeches. "Get going! All of you! I'm going to distract them!"

Lukas threw a worried eye over at the girl. "Stifle! We can't do that! What if you get yourself in a tough situation?"

Now it was Silas' turn to speak up, tightly closing an eye against the onslaught. "He's right. We're not taking a risk."

Chione lowered her voice, glaring at the guys while being pelted. "But I am."

Without warning, she dashed deeper into the hallway, prompting a majority to follow her tail. She disregarded the name calls, fury contorting her face. Unfortunately, Chione could not hear anything beyond the shrieks and cries for her blood; and, going full speed was not able to prevent scratching thanks to the birds' flying ability. Brown eyes trailed the doors the girl was passing by, noting dorm residents perceiving the racket and becoming surprised with the intruding, vicious kestrels pursuing after a student.

Coming near a metallic-looking door caught Chione's attention, and she smirked as the distance closed. She skidded to a near halt and, as fast as she could, slammed her way inside, and kicked the entrance shut immediately. Her senses picked up on the slippery surface she stood on, the soap smells, the feel of concentrated humidity and steam, and the repetitive hard knocking on the door, as animalistic screams continued. The girl backed to the furthest side of the shower room, now feeling stings all over her body. Chione glanced at a mirror and noted the fabric tears, scowling. "Filthy birds. These were my good clothes, too."

In the corner of her vision, Chione noticed shower heads attached firm to the walls, dripping water from recent use. Though she was disappointed that they could not be detached, she was grateful for the lack of windows. The gentle touch of steam gave her a sense of relaxation; but, she fought against sleeping, for an idea popped into her head, procuring a smirk on her face. She rubbed her hands before walking over to the showers.

* * *

By the time they were nearing the forest, the group had already suffered scratches in greater number – and increasing. Evening-roaming people instinctively shifted their bodies away from the oncoming threat manifested in angry birds. No staff member was present among the crowds the trio encountered. While the decreasing light of the sun played with the Lyoko warriors' eyes, the kestrels had shown no falter in their energy, squawking and swinging legs to get in more stings.

Lukas was already wheezing. He could feel his body wanting to lag behind the black-haired fellow and Lyn. The resolve to keep on running was only fueled by the bloodthirsty birds and their strange eyes. Lukas trekked it faster when the falcons went for his legs, clawing enough to tear partially into his jeans. His heart pumped along with his pace, pounding strong as a gavel against a judge's counter; yet, he continued to be significantly inferior compared to the other two despite going at his fastest. Though the soft grass they finally approached assisted in alleviating pressure on his lower limbs, Lukas clenched teeth from the muscle stress and avian assault, following the girl and boy into the forest heart.

The smells and peaceful – albeit with more noise – atmosphere of the area was disregarded, as the younger boy shouted questions. His inquiries were fired as sprays of a machine gun. "Where are we going exactly? What's going to happen to Stifle? Why are we running away from the school? What's going on?" Lukas raised his voice louder. "Can any of you answer me?"

Lyn did not turn around while answering, in huffs. "I know everything must be very strange for you, Lukas, but you just have to trust us for the moment!" She let out a dry cough, trying to catch her breath. Lyn was quick to get back on talking following the recovery. "I promise you: you'll know soon enough; but, right now, we're all in danger of getting our eyes pecked out Hitchcock-style. So can this please wait?"

Silas watched the trees seemingly flee away from the three in a blur, sprinting past the kestrel flocks flying after the teenagers. He caught on an odd, sunken-in patch in his line of vision no more than a few steps away. To his dull interest, he was suffering the most injuries, with the majority of falcons keeping up with him. Rather than worry about his health, he shifted his legs to slide and deafly stop in front of the manhole out of place in the luscious green. The birds grew more aggressive in their tactics, now concentrating efforts in the face region of the teenagers. Effort used, Silas fought urges to swat away talons and beaks and lifted the metal cover, exposing the putrid sewer odor for all of them – human and avian. Wings and shrieks turned up a notch on the volume scale. The kestrels showed clear disgust towards the pungency as they distanced themselves from the group.

The teens hurried to descend the ladder and cover the opening. Each of them attempted to catch breaths, only to cough from the horrendous stenches of the deep waste.

When everyone had settled on firm ground, Silas panted, his throat slightly dry, "Now, Lukas, like what we said back in the dorms, you must be willing to do what we do and ask. That was part of our criteria."

Lukas was wheezing more than Lyn, but the boy managed to stifle enough gasping attempts to talk. "I… kind of have to ask too. Birds aren't known for attacking people in groups like this." There was not a hint of sarcasm in his voice, but it was difficult maintaining a calm tone. "And I-"

"Listeeeeeeen." The girl interrupted after huffing out a hurtful sigh. She erected her posture though was shaking. "I'll keep it short and sweet, okay?" One little hot breath was released before Lyn's talking speed tripled, bringing the attention of the two boys to her in utter confusion. "We enter into a virtual world full of dangerous monsters to fight some evil virus called X.A.N.A. and we needed someone to help out with computers – which would be you – and this activation of the virtual world has brought hazards in the real world, like the earthquakes, but we can't do anything about it because the computer won't shut down so we got to fix it." The gentle smile further baffled the guys. "Does that make sense?"

Lukas blinked, and honesty slipped out of his mouth. "No. And I also think this is insane."

Pout. "Look! It doesn't matter. Icy is in danger, and we need your help! So please!" She turned on her heel and started to walk down the passageway, mumbling to herself about the incompetence of boys.

Lukas looked to the other male, who shrugged and followed after her. He tilted his head, frowning, and then sighed. "I… I kind of don't have a choice now, do I? To make sure Stifle and everyone are okay…" He let out another one prior to catching up to the two.

* * *

Water collided onto the floor in solid streams. The humidity – coupled with the collecting heat – was already escalating to sweat-producing heights. Prevention to acquire deathly levels was edged off from the minor ventilation shafts on the ceiling, but the steam rate overpowered the speed the fog could rise and escape the area.

Chione could detect the trickery the steam made to act like an environment recently hit with heavy rain. She easily smelled the moisture and could almost taste a fake cold. The evaporated moisture tickled her skin and tempted it to perspire for a little before floating away. Chione felt uncomfortable at best, sitting on the smooth ground, watching the flowing liquid congregate to a single drain in the center of the room. She also kept eyes for the vapory film clouding her vision and the door knob jiggling, with accompanying screeches. "This wasn't such a good idea…" Thinking about it, Chione shook her head. "Man, I'm stupid."

With a sigh, she rose and walked towards the exit, coming up with a new plan of action. Chione stayed on the side where the entrance would swing open to and pressed herself onto the wall, proceeding to silence her breathing to the best of her ability. She locked onto the metal lever, which was progressively moving down to unlocking. Her heart went from steady to becoming painful knocking against her ribcage. The adrenaline diffusing into her bloodstream failed to quell when the she inhaled great amounts of air. Instincts dictated her body to tense up.

Scratches continued on, rapping on the door and the handle. There were many failed tries to gain entry before success was presented. When the egress swung little by little, the kestrels stuck their beaks into the space, cawing mad still. They were squeezing their bodies into the shower room, slipping into the aperture, while those that inserted their bills kept the door propped. Soon, all of the birds could not wait another second, spilling in full force, almost smacking Chione in the face in the process. The falcons hovered and did not move much, aside to kick steam into the atmosphere and clear the floor. They would twitch their heads side-to-side, but their bodies would not twist around until it was too late.

Chione already ran her way around and jolted down the hallway, giving herself a head start before the birds knew what happened; it was not a good preemptive tactic in dashing from the scene, however, because the kestrels were quick to catch up to her, performing slashes with their sword-sharp claws and mouths. She guarded her head from the attacks, multitasking in conjuring up another strategy and watching her environments to escape the best way possible. Chione, on a whim, headed for the stairs. She tripped a few times, struggling with the decreasing energy and the tiredness in her legs, on the steps, but she would balance herself enough to not fully crumble to the ground.  
Chione made it to the first floor. The air inside her was depleting too quickly for her to register the direness of the situation; she also did not quite fully recover from the earlier sprint, her muscles crying for her to take a break. By the time she was on flat carpet, the girl could not take any more straining abuse.

She halted abruptly in the middle of the lobby. Chione noted the birds surrounding her and flapping wings in single positions, gazing at her with their eye-symbol orbs. They even had quieted the noise. Silence permeated between both parties, each glaring at the other. The air was just as tense as the constrictions in Chione's tightening thighs. One twitch would set off everything into frenzy. She was doing a short respiratory period to get her mouth not feeling so dry; and, she had to envy the birds for not having to deal with friction and the mechanics of landing feet to propel one's self.

By the shift of her foot, Chione had started the invasion from the birds once again. Kestrels hissed their battle cries at her, honing in. She put herself in a boxing position, narrowing vision on single targets in front of her, ignoring other birds for the moment. When they got near, she instantly swatted dukes. She was seldom successful in landing hits, though the avian foes had enhanced luck slashing at her fists. Her connecting blows did not lower their numbers; in fact, knowing better, the falcons were winning by draining her spirit. Merely lowering her arms would make her open to a brutal assault and ensure defeat in a gruesome ending. Certain instances in the fight, Chione was dodging their attacks, hoping to conserve vigor to last out until Silas could deactivate the tower. It hurt knowing that she could not protect all sides, characterized by new marks on her back and sides. Whatever resembled a collared shirt and vest transformed into sweat-stained rags – not yet ready to fall apart but definitely damaged beyond repair. Her cargo pants were in better shape, bearing minor scratches on the thighs and legs. The perspiration on her face was collecting dirt, but she did not have time to be bothered by that or her messed-up hair while deflecting the bird attack. Her will was running out.

Any tries to wipe acrid liquid out of eyes was met with a kestrel having a good hit on Chione. She was almost done; all the energy was sapped. Heavy panting replaced will to keep on going. Chione had fought with laziness, but the need for rest was powerful, even more than the concentration to stay alive. Shaking freezed her legs, and a phenomenon had her arms lowering themselves to the side. One good knock-back plopped the girl on her behind, huffing, wheezing painfully inside and outside. The parchedness left her throat desiring an entire lake to drink. Now, her body had given up on her.

Chione was too busy having breathing difficulties to see the kestrels swoop in like hungry vultures diving to a carcass.

* * *

The elevator opened to allow Lukas sight on the computer room; and, when he did get a glimpse, his eyes widened to the size of dinner plates. Absently, the brunette stepped off the ride the group was on and looked at the surroundings, being extremely curious. He mumbled positive comments about the machine's gigantic structure, the chords flowing everywhere but in a uniform presentation, and the complexity of the work before them. He was unconscious of the actions he was doing, such as feeling the surface of the smooth keyboard.

"Do you like it?"

Lukas swiftly turned back to the elevator, still having excitement and awe. "T-This is… T-This is amazing! I would never have… thought such a place would exist."

With a confident smile, Silas snorted chuckles. "I know, right? It's great that you feel that way – because it's all yours to toy with."

Eyes widened further, even beyond what Lukas thought was already his potential earlier. "No way… I… I couldn't…"

"No, no; I insist. That's why we hired you in the first place. We need some genius to tinker with that thing." He saw Lukas now frowning and the brows knit up. "But hey! I think you'll do great. There must have been a reason why Lyn wanted you to be with us."

The blond giggled as Lukas turned to her, blinking while continuing to frown.

"Alrighty then." Silas, smirking, punched the button and tapped his head with the right index finger in an informal soldier salute fashion. "Beam us up, Scotty. Figure out where we need to go by finding a red tower." He said a quick sentence before the doors closed on the two. "I'm sure you can find the virtualization program by yourself."

Lukas did not let up on his confusion as Lyn and the black-headed male disappeared from his sight. The computer sat in front of him, smiling in a green glow, the radiance tinting the chair and suggesting the boy to sit down. He blew out exasperated air, planted himself into the uncomfortable, hard chair, and immediately tapped buttons to bring forth a flurry of windows. His eyes narrowed to total seriousness, accompanied by a stern face. The multiple shifts between saturated blue to darker in alternative shifts did not blur his vision. Lukas' wonderful information harvest inverted his serious expression to a mature happiness. His mind let the new material fester and grow in his head, then he categorized related pieces in haste for the 'virtualization'.

He found the program Silas referred to, represented by three columns in a window. It indicated that two presences were detected. Lifting the headset from the keyboard and inserting the tool onto his left ear, Lukas talked through the microphone piece, having already discovered how to contact into the room Lyn and – to him – the stranger. After asking if the two were ready and getting the okay to launch the program, Lukas nodded to himself and pressed the enter key. A charging-like noise rang from the speakers, and the boy decided to confirm that the process was going. "Transfer: Lyn." Pause.

"Silas," said a deeper voice into his ear.

Nod. "Transfer: Silas. Scanner: Lyn. Scanner: Silas." Lukas closed his eyes, smiling softly. "Virtualization."

* * *

Chione's heart had stopped – but she was absolutely conscious of what was happening. She could not hear herself think or determine which emotion she was feeling due to the proximity of the cacophonous kestrels. The birds were closing in with their talons and beaks, and she was a helpless child watching a car about to run over her. All she did was clutch her head and curl into a defensive position, shutting off visual connection, as though blindness would alleviate the upcoming pain a smidge. Currently, there were only fragments of adrenaline, either leftovers from the previous scuffle or of waiting for her impending doom. The coldness the 14-year old sensed inside was very much welcomed compared to the shrieks and flapping of wings.

The fresh heat came from contact with her foes. She steeled her body for impact. For a moment, Chione could anticipate life escaping her to a bunch of falcons.

In another moment, she could not. The heat dissipated, and the screeches got a bit distant.

The teenager snapped open her eyes and looked. Blinking wiped clean the temporary fuzziness, but she could not erase the surprise on her face. Three enemies were on the floor, sprawled on their backs, and the rest were just as stunned as Chione, taking beatings like they stayed to get hit. The youth watched as fists flashed to knock out more birds. While the flying creatures were occupied, she was slowly, quietly, raising back on her feet, at first having trouble but eventually achieving her goal.

A mature-looking female matching Chione in hair and eye color had taken a hopping stance with her hands prepared to fight energetically. Long hair reached to her chest; but, only the right side had strands styled a couple inches from the ends as spiral curls – though this occurred for those that showed at the front; the rest were straight flat. Chione eyed the hair dancing over the girl's lavender-purple shirt with ruffles trailing from the neck to the abdomen in a converging line. Her torn-style dark-blue jeans were further getting scuffed by the birds, yet the jangling of the numerous bracelets, charms, and bead accessories climbing towards the elbow showed them not to touch her excessive jewelry. Alongside the fighting girl was her male counterpart. He was bolder-looking, topped with spiked brown hair and the same shade of brown eyes, but he did not seem intimidating, especially since the folds of his eyelids made him appear to be sleepy. The boy was compressing his lips to small lines, and veins were popping prominently. His white tank-top was getting drenched in sweat, although the tan pleated pants both looked out of place and unfitting of his muscular build. The single aspect they shared were a form of sneaker-like buckle shoes of black.  
The newcomer female felled a substantial quantity compared to her partner; but, in his defense, he did a tactic where he was letting the kestrels come near, try to attack, and then get caught in his hand, where he would – humorously, in Chione's opinion – throw the bird into others and bide time rather than actually clear them. Chione was honestly amazed, standing and blinking, surprisingly not getting struck while being an idle idiot.

Eventually, shouting broke her trance. The older female angrily commanded Chione to help them out. The youngest in the area, gritting teeth against her body's pleas to rest again, nodded once. She stretched everything, ridding the kinks, and went back into the fray, renewed determination having returned for a full comeback for the time being.

* * *

Silas and Lyn dropped onto a completely solid surface stained in a purple-grey hue. Beneath their feet was a rough texture, making the uncharted region unsuitable for plant life – minus the low trees spouting upon minor rock formations. Large cracks gave the ground the appearance of possibly falling apart. Everything – with exception of the few shrubs and sky – was cast in stone. When they threw their eyes to the distance, the sector had a similar format with the forest one: land for adventurers to traverse on was not infinite; as a matter of fact, a fog was spread in the atmosphere – but not where ground existed. Neither could pierce through the cloudiness in order to guess what lay below the haze. It even played a trick on their vision by cloaking inaccessible mountains. The both of them awed at an anomaly they could only tell by surveying. If their observation was correct, they were standing on floating rock much like the ones hovering on the horizon.

Lukas' voice emerged out of nowhere and snapped the two back to focus. Set to a relaxed tone, he confirmed that the tower was located in the mountain sector, due north-northeast. Lyn asked for the definition of which direction Lukas told them to go; but, in a rush, Silas commanded her to just follow him along the narrow, rocky path, and the Lyoko warriors sped through the scenery, tossing aside everything but the road they had to take – in the chance Chione was getting beaten up badly back on Earth.

They went through caverns not dissimilar to the shortcut stumps in the first sector. Within a short time, the two immersed themselves into a mostly open section, where the only stable footing they could have was on their narrow route. Falling did not guarantee an immediate death, to the twos' thinking, but it likely would. "Like a catwalk," Silas commented while pressing on, grinning a small one.

"A very dangerous one," the other boy's voice replied. "There are other platforms below where you are, but… I wouldn't suggest jumping off any time soon."

Snort. "That's obvious." He and Lyn twisted along with the now-curving path, heading towards a floating island, bearing a space lined by slabs of stone. "Even if everyone was jumping off of a cliff, I wouldn't. What's the difference?"

Some stammering entered Lukas' sentences. "Because… there's more to it than that." He continued only after Silas made a noise, questioning. "Well… according to what I found… uh… the digital void flows below all the environments of Lyoko. It's… sort of a part that is not rendered to have any texture. It's a sea of information."

"A digital sea?"

"Yes. That would be a good name to give it. However… it's like the Internet. It's always… um… constantly flowing. There's no end to it."

Lyn found an opportunity to speak, smiling with radiance. "So what's the big deal? Lukas, it's nothing more than the water in video games. You know, where your character can't swim. If we 'drown' in this digital sea, we'd just lose a life, right? We'd come back to Earth and try again another time. It's no biggie!"

"You… won't come back."

Silas and Lyn stopped dead in their tracks, then widened their eyes to the skies. None of the two could find something to say to that.

"It's… It stores your information, in a way. If any of you fall into the Digital Sea, it would… it would be like you were an inhabitant of that world. For good." Pause. "Virtualized forever."

"So… it's _deadly_ waters in video games." Lyn shuddered at the string of thoughts penetrating her brain. "Oh gosh. That would be terrible! Forever a part of Lyoko… Never to come back to Earth and see our family."

In discreet fashion, Silas had his expression darken and bit softly on his mouth's inside, near the bottom lip. It only lasted for mere moments, before he was patting Lyn on the shoulder and glowing confident strength. "Hey now. Let's not think about that stuff. We just need to be careful. We'll-"

Lukas shouted, "Silas! Behind you! Three enemies are coming!"

The male, swift as gushing water, turned on his heel, and – just in time – he was able to miss the shot fired from an upwards angle. Mutters of sarcastic cheer sighed out of his mouth.

Buzzing broke the peace of the mountain sector. Thin, translucent wings covered in veins and line partitions droned over all sound, and the loudness made it hard for the two to hear each other. With the big head the creature possessed, three sets of wings gave the upper body support, while the bottom – a scrawny segmented portion by large comparison – was blessed by only one pair; what also distinguished this creature from the rest was the gray snout curved similar to a claw, about three inches long. The eye was found in the center of its supposed face, the mark's faded black contrasting the bug's sand-yellow body. Replacing the legs were three green mandible-like structures surrounding the mouth, as though trying to protect that part.

The hornets fired lasers like a gun from their rear ends, the creatures' behinds ricocheting back and a red symbol glow appearing as a firearm's heat burst. The warriors hopped back to dodge the beams. Silas parried lasers all the while, as Lyn was concentrating on the enemies prior to grabbing her tomahawk.

She was about to throw her weapon until Lukas warned the group that two more of the hornet-like monsters were arriving from the backside; and, on cue, the blond was about to jump into acid sprayed from the mouth tips. Tripping, she tossed one leg and flailed arms in the air in hopes to maintain balance; however, the cost of getting upright did result in her stepping into the bubbling green mess, and she was notified that her life points were depleting too quickly. Snarls emitted from Lyn's lips; she moved off the poison and – fortifying bravery – swung the axe in a boomerang motion, twirling her body at the same time for an added effect. The red blinking spot activated upon her toss; and, the girl watched her attack fail, scowling at the monsters after. It whirled on through as the bugs flied out of the way; and, now, the tomahawk was returning to her.

Lyn leered, and she was grinding teeth a tad as the distance between her and the throwing axe was closing in. Her legs tilted towards each other, knee-to-knee and shoe-to-shoe, shaking a little. The weapon twirled as front flips, aiming for her face, the shine reflecting off the metal surface mocking laughs. The first time the axe came near, Lyn ducked, stood, and waited for the second try. She kept her focus on the thrown object; and, while being patient, she thought about the perils the group would have to go through every day, what Chione was dealing with at the moment, and – more importantly – the black-haired girl's personality.

The blond nodded. Her face scrunched into anticipation, furrowed brows and a deep frown plastered on. Readying for impact, Lyn's legs had been repaired to not be fearful anymore but firm. She snorted former anxious air out of her system, and then the female Lyoko warrior stuck her right arm towards the oncoming axe. One breath of calmness. Lyn perked to the buzzing behind her, the hornets not doing anything for some reason. Her weapon was about to be within three feet of her face; but, Lyn spun and snatched the object, noting the yellow blurs during the spin. She ceased movement, facing the couple of monsters, after tossing the axe, stopping in a posture of her right hand barely grazing the left foot. Successful she was to catch the hornets off-guard, for both were taken out in one strike. Lyn let out enthusiastic happiness the moment she leapt into the sky to catch the axe, not as scared this time. The teenager turned around to see the situation on the other side, and she was greeted with a thumbs-up.

Silas had been blocking all the firing aimed at him and Lyn. He had not been able to reflect shots back at their masters, having a difficult time mastering such an important skill. Still, the knight was able to avoid damage. The narrow fighting field and his short-range lance halted him from playing the aggressive offense role. He glowered as the hornets were not loosening tactics. The blond had finished her set, but his flying attackers were not going to fall for the same trap, he knew.

He observed the area, making short glances, juggling between keeping his guard strong and marking his surroundings. Silas focused on a single rock jutting positively at the edge of a bend, a good six inches or less tall, to his judging. A minute was spent before an idea popped into his head; and, when it came, he was smiling.

Silas rolled his head back, looking at Lyn upside-down and gifting a bold grin. "Follow me up, okay?" Ignoring the confused expression, he sprinted, naturally avoiding the lasers trailing his route. From time to time, he would do little hops to ensure he was safe. For the most part, Silas' progress was secured; the hornets kept missing and were moving along with his pace. Within reach of the aforementioned rubble, he jumped onto the rock from a yard away and kicked off backwards, towards the flying monsters and Lyn, by the use of his discovered high-jumping power.

His temporary flight was a sweet confection. Silas simply flew through the atmosphere, swung his lance at the fast-approaching hornets, and followed up by a landing back on the narrow road, resisting the remaining speed by stretching his right leg far apart. He yelled at Lyn to attack even as he heard two explosions from his efforts. Before Silas could look up, the third one was taken out; the black-headed teenager could only see the blond catch her weapon fluently, smirking to top off the experience.

Congratulated but warned that reinforcements could arrive at any moment, the two went back to running.

* * *

A lot of the birds cawed weakly on the floor. In the time since getting back up, Chione was defeated again, almost dying from her parched throat and the flaming sensation engulfing her limbs. Heaving up and down while in a prostrated stated, her chest felt extremely constricted, unable to contemplate the life gathering in the lungs under so much pain. She could not move. The female and male called for her to get up, but Chione was limited to suffocated gasps, no coherent words leaving her lips. Every part of her body was shaking from an unknown duress, yet she was able to raise her head to survey the current situation.

But when Chione did so, the girl saw her possible end. Sharp talons spread out and were aiming for her face. Stuck, energy-drained, and utterly weakened, she shut her eyes tight and snarled between clenched teeth, hearing not an urgent cry from the older female as she awaited a black fate.

* * *

The two had plowed through potential threats with minor injury. Lyn had been shot twice, but the stings did not stop her from protecting Silas. They were nearing the activated tower, foaming a red aura, and Silas made no hesitation to run full force into the column. Lyn, ditched outside, pumped a fist into the air, screamed out her mirth, and was, deservingly, devirtualized by four lasers to the back.

Silas made the giant eye symbol light up in a fast-forward fashion and floated to the top, closing his eyes during the ride. Not long did it take for him to step onto the platform, bringing up the screen. He wasted no time to place his hand on the monitor and deactivate the tower.

"Lukas, call up Chione right now."

Lukas sounded puzzled. "Chione…?"

Anger thrust itself out, but he was worried in actuality. "Stifle! Whoever! Just call right now!"

* * *

Chione was blinking in a wearied gesture as she saw the birds freeze in place, then to drop as though to sleep. Her comrades seemed to be reacting to the strange occurrence the same way. She let moments pass before she was chuckling under her breath, exposing a part of her teeth in her smile. "You… did it… guys…" Afterwards, her body could not take gravity anymore. She caved into the desires, crashing on her side and eyes closed; though, this time, the girl knew she was alive, still going to live, and everything was going to be fine, represented by the relaxed, peaceful grin etched on.

Before the 14-year old could fully pass out, she was pleased more with the cries of urgency and a wrapping of warm around her body. Chione did not care to answer the phone vibrating in her pocket. She was too content at the moment to care for anything.

* * *

Unfazed by the approaching night, Silas, Lukas, and Lyn ran the entire trek back to Kadic Academy, though they were panting with their slackened speed. Students and teachers outside wondered the business the trio had at such late hours, looking, whispering, shrugging amongst themselves. The brunette and blond led the black-headed one onto school campus, directing him by sprinting through a building and dashing into various corridors.

Past the white double-doors below a Red Cross sign, the party crashed into the room, standing and breathing hard. Their eyes centered on one spot.

Chione blinked and tilted her head at the group, appearing to be comfortable under the pure white bed covers. She was propped upright, lying on a pillow placed behind her, which caused for the top portion of her body to be seen. The lack of her signature military-style cap brought startling attention to the three; although, Lyn covered a gasp from the smaller girl's state: she was practically covered in scratches and claw marks, many being prominently deep enough to be a bright red. One, to the trio's outspoken chagrin, was close to blinding her in the left eye.  
Despite their concerned, horror-stricken looks, she was smirking to them.

The three ran to her side, bombarding the girl into an inquiry storm, but she asked them to be quiet and listen. After silence fell, Chione said, "The nurse said I'll be fine." Amused snort. "Some are deep, but I won't end up with scars. I had to fight them. That's why I look like a cat post." She folded her arms. "Yolande's going to let me sleep in someone else's room after she's disinfected the wounds. Principal Delmas wants to notify this – somehow, don't ask me why – to the police."

Silas placed his hands on the mattress, being stern. "If that's what has to happen. A Return to the Past is too risky."

She laughed, which made everyone unnerved. "Don't worry." Her head flicked to the direction of the entrance. "It's already been covered."

The group turned around, simultaneously, where she gestured, but Silas was the only one widening eyes. The older female, now in the doorway, had the same reaction as him. She glimpsed between the three-man band, to Chione, and back to the people standing. Surprise stayed even as she spoke, bearing a ripened tone. "Who… are you people?"

The Lyoko warriors did not say a word, shifting glances at one another, conveying silent messages. Silas could read the forming irritation on the older female's posture.

Eventually, Chione answered for everyone. "Classmates." She ignored the trio giving her a funny look, staring at only the female who had raised a brow at the reply. As the girl said the names, she pointed to the respective owners. "Lyn. Lukas."

They nodded their heads.

Chione stole a moment staring at Silas, glancing at his expression that played himself as unknowing, and returned to the girl. "He's... I don't know who he is."

Silas said, "Oh, pardon me. I'm new. Came all the way from England." He cocked his head to the side, looking at the stranger. "Am I right to say you're her sister?"

Nod. "I'm Suelyn." She creased her lips upwards. "But everyone calls me 'Sue'. How about you?"

"Silas Perry's the name." He rummaged through his hair. "Actually, I was about to set up an appointment with the principal, but I got caught up with these guys' shenanigans." His hand went back to his side. "We all got attacked earlier, and we got separated. When we got back together, we tried calling Chione, but she didn't pick up." Laugh. "And that's why we barged in here. We figured she was going to be in the nurse's office."

"Next time…" Sue's face had scrunched, making everyone in the room – minus Chione – nervous with her narrowed eyes and sharply downward brows. The tone which sounded pleasant to meet people then morphed into a viper's venomous hiss. "Next time, stay with her! You could have at least checked up on her more often!"

"Hey, hey!" Silas raised his hands to show his palms, waving them slightly. He held back his emotions from sounding defensive. "We didn't-"

Scoff. "All of you are so stupid. Can't you consider the safety of everyone and not just yourselves? You could have killed her with your selfishness! What if I wasn't there to help her?"

Chione leered at her sister, cold seriousness imbued. "Sue, stop. They get it." Sigh. "You don't need to protect me like that."

Sue widened her eyes at Chione. "You're… protecting them?"

Raise of a brow. "So? You were ragging on them." She cooled herself by breathing in and exhaling, relaxing her features. "I appreciate for all you've done, keeping me from being France's public news and taking responsibility from Mom and Dad, but… don't be mad at them. And certainly don't nag them. So… don't."

The elder sister blinked, stared, and hardened her gaze, rolling eyes back and forth from her sister and the company. Nobody said a word, watching each other, until the Lyoko warriors got startled by a sudden outburst of laughter. Sue roared profusely, expelling all that she found funny with such courage – even gripping the wall for support as she held her sides. Chione had let go of negative feeling to replace with baffled confusion, batting eyes multiple times not out of necessity. Her comrades shared the same thing, as the group watched Sue exit the nurse's office and bawling like a person under a laughing gas spell; but, as she left, Chione dropped back into a leer, then to solidify a wide scowl.

The group was still prior to Lukas voicing his concern; then everyone turned to him – with unexpected results.

"Sti-Stifle, I'm so sorry. I… I thought you were male…" He flushed. "I-I feel so embarrassed. Please forgive me! I…"

By then, everyone was laughing, except Chione. Lukas took a few moments to digest his bashfulness to let out his own few soft chuckles, receiving pats on the back from Silas and on the shoulder from Lyn. Chione, on the other hand, scowled and turned her head away from the hyenas, her left brow twitching. She muttered a lot of irked feelings about the whole day and the future week staying in the dorms with one of these jokers.

* * *

**_Author's Note_**: _It has been a while since I updated, and I apologize. Took a nice long summer break and school started up a while back to keep me busy. I already had this one and the next chapter written but I need to edit them to 's format, since there are no indents and all that noise. Edits are also made since I tend to write too much or repeat the same words. Haha. Yeah... (And I say all this while there aren't many people reading this story. lol 8D )_

_By-the-by, for anyone reading/interested, Suelyn's name is pronounced 'Sue-lyn'. Originally, I had inserted in Suelyn explaining that 'Sue-lyn' is how you pronounce it because it's pronounced 'Sue-ellen' in actuality, but I'm not one of those people to use hyphens for names a lot. She'll mostly be referred to as 'Sue', though, even in narration._


	4. Chapter 4: Hot Electric Pursuit

_Chapter 4_ – **Hot Electric Pursuit**

"You're going to mess up your eyes if you keep playing like that."

Deep in the night, all Kadic students – and even staff – were expected to be asleep. Early birds had not chirped yet, and midnight had not fallen on Paris. Instead of avian company, the darkness was accompanied by the grasshopper singing and hoots among the trees.

The only possible light to be seen in the dorms originated from a handheld gaming console. Lyn was glued to the screen, her thumbs moving rapid fast against buttons. Chione, who was lying on the floor with a blanket and pillow, appeared to have dark bags under her eyes, blinking a lot all the while. She had propped her head with an arm and was looking over at the blond, whose own orbs practically bulged out of their sockets – despite her radiant smile. Both girls were dressed for bed. The smaller of the two stood out more in the dark, wearing a set of night shirt and shorts in dull yellow; however, Lyn was not too far off from being noticeable as well, her gown being a forest green. The varying colors bursting from the handheld system splashed different shades on her attire.

"And if you're going to play this late," continued Chione, "shut off the sound effects. I can't sleep."

Snicker. "Okay. I can do that, Icy." Lyn scrolled a wheel on the device, the noise lowering to near silence. Hearing tossing, she snorted amusement. "Chione."

Chione, her eyes relaxingly closed, turned on her side and lied on the pillow, but she let out a sound indicating she was conscious.

"I've been kind of wondering for a while." A set of blues shifted to the laying girl. "You're Asian, aren't you?"

"Hm? Yeah. What brought that up?"

"Oh, just out of curiosity! You definitely look like an Asian person – with the curved eyes, rounder face and all – but you're pretty light and have a very English-like last name…"

"Chinese-American biracial – to a degree. Or is it 'Chinese-English'? Either way, I'm a half-breed. Sort of."

Lyn yawned and killed the lights from her handheld, setting it on a nearby nightstand before getting cozy in her bed, shifting to a comfortable position within the sheets. Along with the other female, she shut her eyes and spoke out loud. "You sure don't look nearly as European as the rest of us. Paler, sure, and a bit bigger compared to others I know; but, other than that, you're Asian, through-and-through."

"I'm about 75% Chinese and 25% English. If that's how genetics and math work and helps to explain anything." Chione opened her eyelids slowly and looked at nothing but darkness. "I'm French-born and so are my parents, however." She rolled herself to face Lyn, chuckling somewhat. "How about you?"

The only answer the youngest-looking girl received was through light breathing. With a disheartened sigh, she went back to her original laying side and fell asleep fast.

* * *

Lunchtime held the odors of hot dogs, lukewarm corn, room temperature slices of loaf bread, and a sweet broth in a bowl. As a typical day in Kadic Academy, the popular students had focused themselves on one side of the cafeteria, having fun with their gossip and talks about their day. The rest did not have such dissimilar discussions, but they did not dare to venture over to areas where their social standing was lower. They were all content with their groups, laughing and poking fun at each other.

Silas entered in by himself, breathing calmly, and only smiled, in softness, as his age peers – and even children younger than him – gazed at him, grinning, giggling. He held in showing uncomfortable feelings as he gathered his food. In a corner, Lukas was already sitting at a table, waving timidly at the older male.

Already as Silas passed by people, he could hear words spreading.

He plopped onto a chair across from Lukas, glowing greatly. "Hey. Why are you still so shy about me being here?" Food was going into his mouth before Lukas could talk back. "It's been a week already, and you've still can barely wave, let alone say hello."

The green-eyed fellow, on the other hand, was, more or less, playing with his edibles, staring down and away from curious people's attention. "H-Huh? Oh. Um. Overall, I-I'm not used to this…" Lips pressed hard into a thin line. "I-It's a bit strange that we sit together at a table like this…"

Silas stopped a scoopful of broth mid-air, blinking. "Oh. I guess that's true." He shrugged prior to chomping again.

Lukas now tried to bring tiny portions into his system, but he had checked his manners while speaking to his comrade. "Y-Yes. In actuality, it's only been Lyn and a few people that I've been able to sit with… In fact, she was with me when we first met Chione. That time…"

"Uh huh. Also the first time she and I met as well." Chuckle. "It's quite funny that we all met her on the same day; but, without her, I wouldn't be here – or even operable." Silas ate through half of his plate, to Lukas' apparent surprise. "But enough about that." He saw nervousness contort onto Lukas' face, and he tried to wave off anxiety by twirling his fork. "How goes the encryption stuff?"

Shake of the head. "It's definitely some tricky material to handle… Whoever created these files, they wanted to make sure that not everyone could read them like open books."

Nod. "Of course."

"But it's not like any basic encryption. As I can guess, these are the work of a genius – or geniuses, if they happen to be by two different people. They have definitely gotten rid of any tangible means for the common man – or even professional hacker – to get a hold of the information stored. Whatever it is, it probably has to be about Lyoko and this X.A.N.A."

Silas pushed away the empty tray, placed his elbows on the table, and partially covered his mouth while talking. "Can ya guess how long it's going to take to decrypt them?"

His voice grew grim, hesitating to spill the truth. "Weeks. Months. Maybe even years. It's hard to say. I would need some more knowledge about the type they used or created to even lock away the files; or, better yet, I would need to get a hold on better codes and programs to execute the unlocking."

"Whatever it takes. It's cool, though." Blues glittered in blissful happiness as they became distant. "Hey you two."

Lyn and Chione were walking to the table. The blond carried her food with a smile on her face, while the shortest member of the group had nothing on her person and looked neutral in expression. Silas opened his mouth, but he suddenly shut it after the energetic one, within instinct, graced herself into the chair adjacent to Lukas'. When Chione sat instead, he had a frown on his face, which Silas did not bother to wipe away while he spoke towards Lyn, ignoring Lukas' daily expression of concern for Chione's health. "So, Lyn, you ready for your competition?"

She radiated to the warmth of many suns. "Yup! I've been practicing whenever I got the chance."

"No kidding," interrupted an irritated-sounding Chione, complete with an eye roll. "I can hardly sleep in her room. I'll be so glad when I can relax in my own bed tomorrow."

Lyn pouted. "So mean! This is the thanks I get for letting a dear friend share my space!" Her lips pursed as she crossed her arms and looked to the side. "She lived in my room like a princess and didn't bother to help me clean up!" The girl hastily banished negativity with simple glee after she earned another eye roll. "But no! I'm totally going to win this thing!" She balled her fists and pumped them into the air, garnering the ignored attention of students in the background. "I've been practicing and strategizing so much. There's no way that I could lose!"

Lukas said, still being selective of his eating, "This is the first time you're doing a video game competition, isn't it, Lyn?"

The blond lowered both her arms and the enthusiasm, making her hands grip the table edges. "Yes." She tilted her head downwards, avoiding her group's attention. "I always wanted to join, but I had my status to look out for, you know? The Royal Flowers didn't even want the casual gamer. It was so oppressive!" Lyn erected back to normalcy, now smiling in a reserved manner. "All I had to think about was the next fashion statement and what to wear for the next day. There was no time to play around like this." Laugh. "I'm so glad I left them. They can all wilt away for all I care now!" Chuckles bursted through her mouth, despite her partners shooting nervous expressions to each other.

Every ounce of dark laughter ceased as the Lyoko warriors were approached by three male students about the same age, looks-wise, as Silas. The one in the front, red-haired and the biggest of the trio, had an angry look plastered on; the other two, a darker-haired brunette and a dirty-blond fellow, stood on the sides, arms folded and neutral in their faces. The three shared a trait in wearing jackets, though they had their own styles beyond that quality. The supposed leader was dressed in a darker striped shirt and zipper pants dragging near his boots. He stood out the most with his wrist sweatbands. In a boyish way, the dirt-blond male presented himself in a simple cotton t-shirt and skinny jeans; and, lastly, the darkest haired of the three wore a tank top, coupled with pleated pants.

The brown-haired guy and Chione made eye contact, though he turned away as the redhead stepped forward, closer to former-popular girl.

"Hello, Lynette." His light-brown eyes darted between Chione, Silas, and Lukas before returning to girl blond. "You wouldn't happen to have any room at your table for us three guys, would you?"

Chione scrolled her vision over at the occupied seats and turned back to the males. "Perhaps you should try counting or looking around. All of our seats are taken."

Snarl. "I wasn't asking you, loser."

"It's only true."

"Icy is right, however," interrupted Lyn, giggling. "We're completely empty."

Silas threw in his own commentary, smirking. "Yeah, and we'd rather not want to sit with people that harass one of our friends nonstop – even when they're heading to the dorms." Sigh. "Man, can't our friend have a break every once in a while? It's like as though these guys are those annoying butlers that bother their masters every twenty seconds." His smirk grew wide. "Only that they don't help them one bit and are twice as bad."

A fist pounded on the table, forced chuckles coming out of the twitching redheaded boy. "Haha, _so_funny." He threw a glare at Silas, who raised his brows and continued to grin. "So funny coming from you, Silas Perry. Hilarious coming from the new guy."

The black-haired teen pointed a finger upwards. "Not to mention the latest scoop about being one of the hottest students to ever grace Kadic Academy. Those reporter boys – Kojo and Marcel, weren't they? – they kept pestering me for questions – for a scoop on the hottest item- no pun intended."

Lyn giggled more, which caused the redhead to grit teeth.

After putting down his finger, Silas continued on with his playful expression, exposing his teeth. "What do you fine gentlemen want from Lyn and our prince – other than to bother them, of course."

"_Ha_. You're such a kidder."

Silas attempted a weak bow. "At your service, Jerome."

"It's **Jet**, for your information; and, I also wanted to personally congratulate Lynette for what we overheard. About the competition."

Lyn's eyes sparkled. "Yeah? Will you boys be rooting for my success?"

"Haha. **No**." Jet curled his lips into a sinister smirk. "I would honestly, sweetie, but one of our guys is also entering, to our _shocking_discovery. Teo?"

The dirt-blond guy raised his hand, without smiling. His eyes appeared to be painted over in pear-green shade and glaze, cast to the distance, far away from the conversation. The silent aura that surrounded his persona was almost as potent as Chione's, hers being broken by the leer she was giving to the tank top-wearing student.

"We'll be cheering for him. But hey, while we're at it, we thought that we could strike a bet with you, beautiful Lynette."

The group raised brows.

"He's annoyed by us, right? It's only because we're jealous that he stole Lynette away from being available to us guys."

Chione spoke frankly, "I wasn't even aware I stole her."

Jet emitted a snarl, and then cleared his throat. "Anyways, Lynette, I think the conditions we're about to set out are reasonable but also exciting that you can't turn down." Toothy grin. "If you win, we'll stop bothering him and continue what we did before you got together with him."

Chione mumbled under her breath, to which Silas snickered.

"But if our Teo wins, we'll just do what we're already doing – _and_you have to take us three on a date."

Lyn blinked, tilted her head to the side, and creased her brows towards the sky. "That sounds… like a horrible deal. Why do you even have to bug Chione in the first place? Icy's not doing anything…"

Everyone at the table nodded.

The redhead burned up, clenching teeth. "Doesn't matter! It's a chance to make the competition more interesting than it already is."

Sigh. "I don't even have a choice, it sounds. Poo." Lyn surveyed the looks of her friends, nodded once, and turned to the three males. "I accept; but, really, it doesn't sound fair at all. Icy would have been much better dealing with striking up a proposal than what you gave me." She twisted her head to Chione, smiling. "I hear Icy's deals are like ice cream- 'Icy' ice cream!"

Chione blinked, only to then turn her attention elsewhere, muttering inaudible words.

Jet spun around and waved off a goodbye prior to leaving the area, Teo following akin to a duckling trailing after its mother. The leftover brunette eyed the Asian girl with a sleepy gaze; and, with a calling from his mates, he departed from the group's presence in a flash, walking with hands in his pockets.

Lyn watched them, observing their movement; with a time's passing, she reverted focus back to her own quartet and pushed out hesitant laughter, forcing a semi-true grin to show. "They're such a riot, huh?"

"It's more like Jet is making the most noise, and the other two stand to the side," said Lukas. "But that's from my observation."

Silas, now feeling neither cheer nor anything bad, shrugged. "It doesn't matter. Since Lyn agreed to the bet, she's going to have to train a lot more." Fox-like smile. "I'm going to have to root three times as much as I was planning to – just in case."

Chione sighed while fixing her cap. "And my_ life_ depends on her performance. _Oh boy_."

* * *

In a building across the street from Kadic Academy, seemingly a hundred people were making preparations: sweeping the floors of the stadium-like area, setting cables correctly into a monstrous television monitor the size of a movie theatre's, and the stage lights being tested and adjusted. On a general level, the consensus of feeling was a recipe comprising excitement, dashes of happiness spice, and pride pinches for tasting. Shouts across the huge room filled the gaps between individuals – either in command or a wonder how the progress on a certain part was going. Everyone was busy, moving every which way as working ants in their underground home.

A man was laughing near a projector on a stand. One level under the machine was a new generation black console that was sleek as skin shined by sunscreen. While talking to figures on a beam high above, the male flipped through a case holding discs of various titles and genres. His smiles reflected off of some covers and were reciprocated by his peers.

He abruptly stopped having a conversation as he took out an object. His eyes inspected the disc, turning it over and over. "I don't remember this being on it," he said to himself in confusion, looking at the concentric circles at the center and radiating out, intersected by lines to make a black eye-like symbol.

* * *

After their classes were over, the group headed over to the building across the street, Lyn reading from a red flyer – almost as if the paper was a handheld system for her to stare into. Silas and Lukas conversed about programming plans and the progress of current projects; but, noticing silent Chione taking more interest in the ground than in the discussion, the Silas would nudge her to talk, beaming friendliness. Sighs came from the girl, only to say that she had no idea what they were talking about and, so, should not waste any words on the matter.

The blond looked up and sporadically scampered to a man standing guard at a door, taking tickets from a few people in a line. They had gone inside before Lyn and the group – who were still walking at their usual pace – could reach the man. She thrust out four slips and stated she was a participant in the tournament. Following a check through a clipboard, he nodded, wished her luck, and opened the entrance for the group.

Entering inside, the teenagers opened their eyes big. While there might not have been half-full of people so far, the numbers were still impressive for the event that was going to take place. Many watchers congregated to closer to the enormous monitor, not a soul amongst the stadium seats. None could tell if the crowd members had already known each other before the coming to the tournament, but the amiable aura from every single person made the building feel warm. There were staff straightening cables and scrolling down lists, asking others if everything was ready to start in thirty minutes.

Almost immediately, a woman asked if anyone in the group was participating; and, when Lyn said she was, the woman told the rest to sit in the chairs on ground level.

Lyn was taken away by the lady. Chione planted onto a seat on the edge once both disappeared. With shrugs, the boys claimed ones near her.

"Why do you think anyone can't sit in the stadium seats?" asked Lukas, stealing glances around the area.

Shrug. Silas looked around, scanning the building, and grinned. "It might be a 'first come, first serve' deal. People generally like to be near where everything is happening. Maybe when there are more people, they'll offer the stadium seats."

Chione narrowed in on Jet and the other boy entering. Their leader flashed a toothy smirk before stealing the spots one chair over Silas. The girl was too late to hone onto any conversation the two older guys were sharing, as Lukas shared concern at Chione, giving her a face full of worry. "I don't like them," was all she said. She returned to her quiet demeanor, listening to Silas and Lukas' mingle, arms crossed and waiting for the show to begin – even as she could feel brown eyes staring at her from the side.

Eternity seemed to have slipped through time until the moment everyone had been waiting for arrived. A suit-wearing man looking to be in his late-forties stepped onto the stage, clearing his throat as the microphone in his hands was near his lips. The crowd silenced themselves. With a joyous smile, the middle-aged man announced that the competition was now starting, and, in an enthusiastic, cheery voice, ushered the contestants onto the same platform. Teenagers walked their way onto the stage. Recognizable to the group, Teo was trailing after the bombastic Lyn, the girl waving, laughing, and bringing all attention onto her. After they had ceased movement in favor of forming a stiff line facing the crowd, the announcer rushed through the rules, the conditions, and saying how the games chosen were pre-arranged but new content – to advertise the company the contest was held for.

With all being said and done, he commanded that the pedestals where the players would be using be set up, the games put in, and the games to begin. Everyone but Chione was cheering in their own way.

* * *

Three hours whizzed by. The elimination of the players after being eaten by crocodiles, losing all their lives, or achieving the lowest score had left count to four participants: Lyn, Teo, an older girl, and a smaller lad who appeared to be nervous enough to get sick onstage.

The last disc was being popped into the system as the announcer explained that what was to be shown and played was a game still going through development, unrevealed in any sort of media, kept entirely secret from the public. Lyn tensed up from the words. After besting contestants across puzzles, adventures, mini-games, and thrillers, she had not a clue what to expect from a game put under hush-hush from the masses. Her opponents, however, looked calm – even tranquil that this was the final test.

The man demanded that the console be turned on. Following the start up reminding the company that made the system, the game's title screen showed itself. Eight-bit graphics cast the audience into a world of adventure and fantasy, a band of heroes running past the two-dimensional scenery, to whatever they were going. The words, "Hot Pursuit," dropped from the sky, almost landing on the group, only to bounce back to the center, flashing to everyone.

The players pressed the button. As further detailed, the game was a portion of what was to come from the release, a throwback to old electronic entertainment but with the length and complexity of recent ones. Whether the participants were listening to the intention could not be told; they only perked their ears to when the man said the last obstacle could not be beaten; it was a test of lasting the longest. Once they were cast into the world, they were off to do whatever it took to win.

Lyn, after calming her heart of worry, played as though it was nothing special – except with a mental timer to complete the challenge before Teo. The blondes were moving their fingers to the speed that made them blur – and the announcer noted this to the audience.

It was not an hour later those three contestants – including Teo and Lyn – made their trek to the ending obstacle, with the other participant following a little behind. As of this demonstration for the game, they landed into one of the harder mini-bosses, a red dragon roaring in rage.

Chione, Silas, and Lukas rose from their seats, ignoring the attention they were garnering as they put themselves in defensive stances.

Lyn widened her eyes. "X.A.N.A….?"

As though painted around its eyes, the mini-boss had the symbol the Lyoko warriors had come to know as trouble incarnate. The dragon roared once more. Under the name 'Ferocity', a text box burst into view: 'Sleep Flash'. The animation of a grenade thrown onto the floor and bursting into gas putting the game warriors to sleep also summoned a fog from a pair of speakers placed near the watchers. Those the floor-hugging gas touched pulled them into a quick, heavy slumber. It had reached for those that attempted to run from their chairs, but they fell, too, to a powerful general anesthesia effect.

The participants were staring behind them, mouths agape. The announcer did not know what to make of the situation; but, suddenly, he and anyone that were not contestants were taken out of the picture thanks to a shock of electricity from the lights above. The blond girl had time to go back to her screen and see the words 'Electric Dismiss' from the X.A.N.A.-ified dragon.

"Lyn!" Silas called out to her. The Lyoko warriors were jumping on unoccupied chairs and used them as a safe passage to the exit.

She was laughing, though as a form of a nervous fit. "N-No worries, my peeps! I think I have to give this boss the one-two! Hurry! He did say it was an endurance round rather than actually beating it!" Lyn was shouting as she could hear their footsteps get distant. "Just don't forget me, okay? Ooooooh…"

"Lyn."

Turning to her right, the girl blinked at the – thus far – quiet person known as Teo. His look was serene, attempting to be strong in a helpless situation. Anyone that could have helped the challengers was knocked out, but he was emotionless, for the most part. The single sign that he was human were the fires of determination cast in his eyes.

Lyn gave a single nod, clenching teeth into a frown towards the dragon. "I give the 'one-two', and you give the 'buckle my shoe'."

Before she went back to her side of the screen, Lyn smiled as Teo snorted for laughs.

* * *

Arriving in Lyoko, the princess and knight fell onto their feet over sandy ground. For a comparison, this sector was an orange palette swap of the ice sector, complete with the random stone formations and an illusion of a never-ending land of pebble. Caverns, as well as canyons, could be found far in the two's line of sight. From the current location, the tower's wires flowed red power in the direction towards the east. The overall orange tone gave the area a sense of heat in the two's head; but, the virtual world's limitations could only have them imagine the torridness brushing their skin.

Silas nudged Chione, pointing to an edge partially hidden by fake stalagmites. "The Digital Sea, Chione. It's the same thing as what you were looking at when we first met – back in the forest sector."

"And we'll drown and die in it."

"Eh. Alive in the sense of the virtual world – not alive in the sense of reality."

She nodded. "Okay. Right. Sure. Just as long as we avoid dropping into it like idiots, we'll be fine." Chione directed towards Lukas: "Where are we going?"

"The tower lies in the east. Go straight in where you are facing now."

Not hesitating for a second, the two sped through the scenery. Hardly three minutes passed before they were smacked with monsters: the hornets and the walking block. Immediately on contact, the creatures were firing their lasers in a pattern, forcing the girl and boy take steps back and to the side. The flying bugs flew beyond them and tried to attack from the backside while the block stayed in the front.

Chione was facing the insects and deflecting beams with her right arm. The left hand was thrust out, the girl concentrating on her other power; however, nothing came out of it. "You've got to be kidding me," she snarled through gritted teeth.

"What's wrong, Chione?" asked Lukas.

"Um, nothing. Nothing wrong with my power not working." She continued to concentrate harder but to no avail. Not even a little bit of cold power would manifest.

A lance leaped over her head and plunged into one hornet's eye, making it cringe followed by an explosion into red holograph-like bits of mechanical parts. As a repercussion for destroying one of its allies, the block shot Silas in the stomach, to which Lukas warned him how much health points he had left.

Silas said, "Switch monsters with me." Smirk. "Flyers are my type of enemy."

Reciprocating a devilish smile back, Chione changed places with Silas. She charged towards the block, getting hit a couple times in the process and Lukas shouting for her to be more careful. Bold smirks replaced any words. The girl avoided taking abuse from the block, along with successfully dodging the ice beams during the progression. Her smirks grew larger and larger inversely proportional to her closing in on the enemy. The monster seemed so far, but also close, as the creature was shifting its legs, trying to give a distance between them yet failing. Lukas continued to notify her health whenever she happened to get hit, practically pleading to stop the aggressive approach, yet she still pressed on to ignore him; and, the moment he was done updating for the second time, Chione literally stabbed her blackened arm into one of its eyes, grunting noises as the block twitched and light shone from the crack, and kicked herself away from the foe before it could explode on her.

Chione turned around back to the hornets. Sighing, she charged into the lightshow of a fray, seeing how Silas had not advanced at all against the opposition.

* * *

Half of the participants now lied on the floor, fainted. The two blonds were the last people to be observing the situation unfold. Sweat beads rolled down their faces. For both, their fingers, arms, and legs were starting to feel the pressure of doing excessive work for such a long period of time. Lyn and Teo also were grinding inside their mouths, watching their respective dragons summon lightning from above to attack their hero band. Coordinating well with the text boxes, sparks showered from the headlights and lightning streams rained down to almost strike crowd members. Anything listed than the electric strikes did not constitute a possible threat to the real world, as Lyn made a note of; but, with each time the monster used 'Electric Dismissal', the attack got nearer to the sleeping innocents.

Lyn knit her brows. Her fingers screamed in exhaustion. While catering to the health needs of her in-game heroes, her body was shaking and shivering: from the adrenaline, the tension, and the thoughts where she was done and would suffer from the worst shock in her life. Having the inability to sit on the floor was getting to her dangerously.

During the stressful playing, a concern-filled pinch tugged at her heart. She was about peek over at her current partner, but then she turned her head fast as she heard the sounds prior to the two other contestants being knocked out – and the unfortunate words from the boy's portion of the monitor.

Teo finally showed signs of utter grief. His breathing grew hard as his orbs were glued to the words 'Game Over' on his side of the screen. He dropped to his knees, completely in a trembling state. The girl shouted for him to stand, but he shook his head. His limbs shaking gave her the answer.

She continued to yell until a shock ran through his body and knocked him out. On cue, Lyn began to cry extremely salty water. Even as the tears were blinding her, she still pushed buttons, urging her in-game comrades to keep fighting until her real partners could deactivate the tower, to end the nightmare she was delving into. Despite the colorful game she was playing, the scenario kicking up, she thought, was that of a dream gone twisted. All the emotions running rampant – and the inclusion of feeling solid loneliness – were breaking her.

Yet Lyn carried on pushing on the controller. She felt like giving up, but she played. Sensing the lightning honing onto the audience shoved her on. Her helpless crying inhibited full access to notice her surroundings visually, but she was entirely fixated on the television screen.

Lyn started to give encouragement to herself aloud. Through the hiccups, she still fought with the dragon.

* * *

Silas had retrieved his lance and was dodging the myriad shots from above. Any pause from the assault pushed him to try attacking the hornets; yet, he kept missing by a hair, the flying critters teasing him by increasing their altitude just enough to avoid strikes. He reacted fast as they were sneaking in shots while he was landing. Handling minor damage, Silas was in good shape, ready to last minutes with the creatures.

From the corner of his vision, Silas detected Chione rushing back to his aid. Ideas were being crunched. The ruthless flyers shot their lasers in unison to produce a hail effect, and he was having difficulty concentrating, balancing defense and constructing plans. The red lights blinding the boy got to be dull in his ears as he further thought of what actions to take.

He eventually smiled.

Turning to the approaching Chione, he reflected one laser at a monster before taking off. Three followed him, shooting and missing, but Silas trekked towards the now-baffled Chione who was slowing.

Taking her by the left arm, he dragged her in the direction of the tower. "Just run for now!"

Chione shouted over flapping, buzzing wings, trying to keep up with the quick-footed male yet tripping at the same time. "What do you think you're doing?!"

"Improvising, of course!"

"That's rather lame!"

"Too bad!"

Lukas informed them that reinforcements were coming from the west; and, judging by the speed rate, they were likely more hornets. A sigh came from the knight.

Barely reaching ten meters east, the tower could be spotted out in the open and near the edge of the desert map. The sinister glow prompted the blue-eyed hero to release Chione's arm. "Give me a lift."

She skidded to a halt and cupped her hands low to her knees.

Silas did his own dirt-crunching drift, jolted back to Chione, and prepared for lift off. The second his foot pressed onto her hands, he could then feel himself break against gravity's pulls. The last he could see behind him was his teammate, grinning to him, retracting arms back to her sides. In silly momentum, Silas had managed to position himself like one of the school arches, his front facing the ground; however, he easily fixed himself, spreading arms out like a landing eagle's wings. Lasers darted past him, a boy a good twenty feet above the foes.

Readying his lance with a twirl, he descended to the enemies. He gripped his weapon in both hands and, out of emerging feeling and a spur of imagination, howled. "Dragoon Plunge!" The spear's tip slashed clean through a hornet the moment it was about to fire. A thunderous thud back onto earth rattled his legs, managing to land on both feet.

He did his own cheering, giving himself mental pats on the back. Silas was grinning like a fool; but, then, he was knocked onto his stomach from duress behind. He grunted then raised his head, only to see Chione performing an awkward spin between the remaining two enemies, stretching out her clawed hand, slicing them. They disappeared before the smug girl could hit the ground.

The knight stood and brushed his armor. "Next time, you want to try warning me before doing something so reckless?" His calm tone betrayed the prominent frown drawn on.

Shrug. "There was no time." The girl motioned her head behind them and walked to him, grabbing him by the arm with her human hand, tugging lightly to the designated direction and releasing her hold. "Let's get going before they catch up to us."

As she sped off, Silas stole a quick glance at the area she touched while also rubbing it, then laughed. "Wait for me!"

Lukas spoke through the silence. "I'm going to try contacting Lyn."

* * *

Fifteen minutes since Teo's collapse, Lyn had already sucked up all the potential tears. What were left was the glistening residue on her face; her usually clear, bright blues were rubbed so hard that they were as red as cherries – and puffed up as big as them as well. She was rattled to the core, the previous shaking having evolved into a bad quiver. The warmth she gathered from the event had evaporated and left her empty, cold, and coursing with adrenaline.

The girl found it good that the dragon had the decency to use his electric attack once in a while, but attack made her heart leap out of her chest, hearing the lightning striking the floor, to not have the knowledge if they were getting closer or farther from the audience – but she could only think pessimistically at the moment.

She jumped from the sudden movement in her shoe. Her phone was just as scared as her, even if it was cheery sounding; the cell phone's own buzzing made sure it was depressed. Lyn scrambled to retrieve the device and hurried to continue playing, putting the phone on her shoulder, tapping faster on the buttons. Speaking took a few breaths to swallow down a terrible stuttering fit, but she could not hide her speech cracking. "L-Lukas? I-Is that you?"

Concern stained his voice. "Is everything okay from your end, Lyn?- Well, as 'okay' as the situation can be…"

Lyn's heart pounded so powerfully that she could hear it over the game and Lukas. She smiled the best she could. "O-Oh, I'm fine. I-I'm still enduring. X.A.N.A.'s being a big meanie. Everyone has been knocked out."

"But you're fine? If you need any assistance, I could tell Chione to head over there if she gets devirtualized."

"No! Just deactivate the tower!" There was pain inside, but she tossed out the need to speak about it. "My party can't heal themselves anymore, and X.A.N.A. is getting close to hitting everyone here." She choked completely. "A-And I… I can't do anything for everyone. They'll probably know something went fishy when they wake up. The contestants were shocked, so…"

"There's something we can do. I'm going to ask Silas and Chione, okay?" Extra worry was added. "Please, Lyn, keep enduring. We'll fix everything in a few minutes. I… I promise. We'll make sure everything is okay."

Her smile dropped into a gentle one. "I believe in you."

The call ended, so Lyn put the phone on the gaming pedestal. "So, stupid dragon. You think you can beat me?" She growled. "Well, just so you wait! I was practicing for days for this competition, and then you had to ruin it! Lynette's going to give you the beating of a lifetime! That's what she's going to do!"

* * *

Lukas sighed. He adjusted the headset and held back frantic emotions. "Silas, Chione, Lyn is in major trouble. Everyone has been knocked out."

Silas was the first to speak. "I know, and we've been trying our best over here!"

Chione tried to reason. "It's kind of not easy to slash-and-run with these enemies."

"I understand completely; but, the main problem is the people." He lowered the volume he emitted into the tiny speaker. "They may wake up knowing what happened before; and, the contestants were actually electrocuted. Their phones are going to be damaged beyond repair, along with anything else…" He waited in his seat, patient, knowing the two were fighting.

"What are you suggesting then, Lukas?" Silas continued after a few seconds' pause. "You can't be saying…"

"A Trip to the Past? It might be the only option we have at this point, unless we want to explain what happened at the competition." Lukas now sounded urgent. "I know we might risk the other people before us coming into the factory, but we don't have any other choice! How would we get away with the competitors' cell phones being destroyed? Not to mention that everyone was knocked out… and Lyn wasn't…"

"I like his idea," came from the girl.

Silas grunted, "But those guys…"

Lukas searched through methods in his head. One popped out to him almost instantly, but he had to sigh, to the confusion of the two on the other line.

"There… might be a way to get around this. I can think of one thing."

"Well?"

"W-Well, I can obtain the 'source code' for the Return Trip's program, because it can be technically called an 'executable program'. I'll, quote-en-quote, 'rewrite' the source code and make a new program out of it."

"And?"

"This new program will have some limitations on who can or cannot be affected. It'll further divide who might recall the events into a third group. Since we don't know if we retain memories during these 'Return Trips', it… it might be tricky to mess with such a revolutionary program..."

"I'm most positive they do. Just from a 'common sense' and logical point."

Nod. "Yes. This is under the assumption that we and the people before will remember events that 'didn't happen'. This is something I can do. It might take a bit of time, but I can make the unaffected be a further exclusive group."

"We have to go with this." Chione sighed, "That many people to fool? Much too risky."

A groan came from Silas. "I suppose that's final. How much time and how difficult will this be, Lukas?"

"It needs some time, and it's extremely hard, unfortunately." Lukas opened new windows and started to type furiously. "We have advanced so far that I'm able to obtain the source code easily." Gulp. "It's the coding and the variable insertion that will be the difficult part. Also that… That this will need to be perfect. If I happen to insert one wrong element, it could bring disastrous results. One mistake, we… we might not even be born, because-"

Chione interrupted, "Oh, please." Her voice was, surprisingly, fairly calm. "Have more confidence in yourself. Jeez. Don't start throwing us all these 'what if' scenarios."

"She's right. I mean, Lyn suggested you to come out of all of us. There was a reason, I'm sure." Pause. Silas said his words imbued with high hope. "I trust you on this. After all, it's not like any one of us other than you knows how to work that thing, like I said days ago." Laugh. "Don't make me repeat myself."

Lukas blinked, his lips parting slightly in puzzlement.

The girl said, "I'll believe in you too; and, if you screw up, you'll learn eventually. I believe you won't screw up so terribly that we'll die, but you could screw up in some other minor way."

"You say the worst encouragement in the world."

Wholehearted laughter spewed out of Lukas' mouth. "It's alright, Silas. I… I won't let you guys down.- W-Well, I mean, um, uh, I will do it to the best of my ability, at least! You two can count on that!"

Silas had the last word. "Wouldn't have it any other way."

* * *

Silas' lance pierced straight through a hornet, bringing down the new enemies down to two. Chione conveniently stood on the other side of the fighting area, throwing back his weapon in time to dodge an attack. "Hey," she called out to her companion. "Go on ahead."

He caught it with ease. "You sure?"

She deflected a laser back to its owner, leading to an explosion. The girl showed off a leer towards the enemy. "Yeah. Just go. I can handle one measly bug on wings."

The knight flashed his gratitude; and, following him saying words to be cautious, he kicked himself off towards the tower at mach speed. The dress-clad girl was left to deal with the hornet, to which she beamed with an evil tinge.

Chione used her right arm to absorb the attacks like a shield, and took in the scenery from her peripheral vision. Besides the rock formations and the flat ground, she could not find anything of use to her that she could come up with. She snapped her left hand's fingers, in hopeful vain that her other power would return, but nothing continued to come out of it. "What is with this?" she muttered. She thought back to all the times she used the ice power. "Moisture in the forest sector… Ice in the ice sector… Nothing in the desert…" Sigh. "Well, that's just great." Her eyes hardened at the monster. "You and me. Commence the long fight."

Chione went back to searching while guarding the hornet's beams despite deeming nothing could be of real use. Her vision fell onto each stone near and far; they were all big monstrosities no way capable of being rooted out of the ground, unless they were the pitiful pebbles. Another irritated breath of air escaped her lips.

She kept on thinking, and then the girl glowered at the insect. "What else I could do with this?" Chione looked at her demonic hand, clenching and unclenching. After she glanced back at a rock, she whispered, "Worth a shot."

Behind her was one of the large rocks about two inches taller than herself. She multitasked between stalling time with the adversary and getting closer to the structure. To her pleasure, the winged foe also followed her pace while not ceasing in the shots. Soon, Chione stood back against the natural wall, patient for the ripe opportunity.

When the hornet stopped to charge its laser, the Lyoko warrior balled up a demonic fist, invested all strength in the limb, and sent a pound to the rock. Cracking occurred, large lines scaling the formation. Chione side stepped from being hit while the destroying process went on. Once the giant stone had broken itself into smaller portions of itself, the girl simply lifted one up. The hornet tried to attack her, yet the blasts were not able to penetrate the newfound shield, instead making the green digitalized dimensions forming the rock show. Chione smirked. She threw the mass at the enemy, and chuckled at the sound of a death-confirming blast.

Chione tilted her head towards the sky, hearing Lukas congratulate her and informing that no other enemies were detected; Silas was also nearing the activated tower. She smiled a little smile and sat on the ground, resting her head backwards on a rock.

* * *

Tears returned to flow down Lyn's face while claiming defeat on the floor. Her entire body trembled, and her eyes were attempting to focus on the screen. On the television monitor, the side she played on now read "Game Over." All signs of strong will and desire to live seemed to disappear entirely under the laughing words blinking at her. "Help… me…"

She shot her head up to see the sparks forming in the lights. The remaining bit of power dictated her to move, to do anything but sit on the floor, but fear had chained her down, rendering her legs useless segments. Before, the girl did not appreciate her heart wanting to escape through her throat in fear; but, now, that same emotion produced her internal engine to sink – and that was less appreciated. Lyn felt ever fiber in her body shudder in front of the volts collecting to form one single dot.

The lightning ribbon reached for her fast, almost quick enough she did not have time to scream and cry every tear she could shed. Preparing for the pain, she shut her eyes tight, still screaming.

One second passed; then two; five and six.

Lyn kept waiting, now shutting herself up. Eventually, she cracked open one eye and reawakened her vision in rapidness. The lightning froze right in front of her button nose, almost to graze the curvature of her slender face.

The blond stared blankly at the white stream until it flickered and vanished. Her next line of action had the girl turn to the back, noticing the disappearance of the gas. Everyone was unconscious and, for the most part, safe. She huffed out in calmness; her eyes went back to their normal bright state – though hampered by the redness and puffiness. Out of the blue, Lyn was giggling in hesitance, wheezing the leftover fragments of energy in her body. Hands went to wipe off tears and clean her face.

Lyn slid over to Teo, unable to rid the paralyzing feeling in her legs just yet. Bending her head down to near his mouth, she could hear faint breathing. Sigh of relief. In carefulness, she touched his body at first, and then she gave him gentle shakes.

"Hello? Hello? Calling in all troops. Um… Sleeping Beauty?"

Nothing.

She hugged her knees and pursed her lips as though pouting. "Fine. Don't wake up. For ignoring me, you won't get a kiss."

Silence.

"Oh, Lukas… Hurry up…"

* * *

The elevator doors allowed passage for Chione and Silas to step into the computer room, stern expressions plastered on. They walked over to a serious, hard-at-work Lukas deepening his frown and typing in frustration. As many as ten windows were shown on the monitor, each having notes or gargled language the girl and black-haired boy blinked at. With the younger boy pressing numerous buttons, the program with the coding scrolled through a seemingly infinite number of pages. While Lukas was working, he was biting the inside of his lip.

"Maybe you should take a break," said Silas, curving brows up. "It's urgent, but you're getting worked up."

Lukas did not bother to look at him, the electric blue light replacing any sort of positive, shy glints in his eyes. "Unfortunately, I need to be quick." Softer frown. "I don't know if you two happen to know, but there is one thing that would prevent us from doing a Return Trip any time we wanted."

Chione and Silas raised their brows.

"If anyone happens to die… They're gone forever."

Both gapped their mouths.

"I'm not certain how that works out, but I know that much. We won't be able to resurrect the dead. Th-That's why…"

"Okay." The girl turned toward the elevator. "I'm going back, then."

Silas gripped the mechanical chair by its head. "For Lyn?"

Nod. "I'll be calling to let her know what's going on – and also as backup in case anyone wakes up and starts questioning her. So don't bother calling her."

"It won't be necessary," Lukas interjected. "I think… I think I have it now."

The two standing gathered closer to the monitor.

"As I explained before, this will be only a modification of the original program." He hit the enter key, eradicating the other windows and leaving the desktop. The mouse was dragged to have the pointer hover over an executable file. "This is it. Those it shouldn't affect anyone that has been scanned from the scanners within a month." Tired smile. "At least, that's what I have it set to right now."

"Amazing…" The taller male had his eyes wide. "Well?"

Gulp. "R-Run it?"

Chione nodded. "Do it." Shrug. "We did say we trusted you on this. Don't disappoint us."

Lukas bobbed his head up and down, nervous as though surviving a car wreck. He could hear major palpitations drumming inside his chest. The tension presented to click the mouse twice made his fingers feel cold in fear. He gulped again. "Launching." He double-clicked the icon, manifesting another window, this one with a ten-second countdown. Green orbs hid themselves from the world behind closing eyelids. "Return to the Past, now."

From the holographic map of Lyoko came a beam of white light touching the ceiling. It then spread out into an arch, growing into a large dome. Wherever the light went, everything was engulfed into brightness. Within fast speed, the white encased the entire world.

* * *

The background noise went escalated from whispers to talking, a volume meter on the world being increased by a remote control. Warmth was brought on by the indistinguishable conversations going on at once. Mishmashes of odors were sniffed, an assortment of foods accounted for. Everything felt friendly, inviting for all to enter in the area.

Lyn opened her eyes and blinked, frowning and turning her head sharp in every direction. She was sitting next to Lukas and across from Chione. While being looked at by the three, the blond stared at Silas' tray, full of food, batting her lashes faster and looking between the three in a quicker pace.

"W-What just happened?!" was all she could say before Lukas was giving her a quizzical face.

"Lyn, is everything okay? We're just in the cafeteria…"

Silas and Chione, on the other hand, looked amused, smiling in their own diabolical ways.

She pointed to Silas' tray of hot dogs, corn, bread, and a broth on the side. "Th-That's the stuff he had yesterday! What-?!"

"Ye-Yesterday?" Lukas one tilted his head, knitting his brows towards the forehead. "Lyn… perhaps you should see Yolande. I should have told you not to play those video games so vigorously…"

Lyn opened her mouth to spew more words, but Silas laughed out loud, raising concerns from Lukas and Lyn.

"Shush, guys. Don't be so noisy." The older student winked as he glowed with ridiculous cheer. "We're going to have to go to the factory to really explain. I'll say this, though." He directed a finger at Lukas. "You, my friend, are a total genius. I praise you for your intellect and remarkable skills."

Lukas formed his mouth in the shape of an 'o', and then was flushing a bright red. "Wh-What did I do?"

Chione chuckled. "Let's just go before those annoying guys get to our table."

Silas pushed himself out of the chair, grabbing his tray. "Yeah. As much as I like food, I know how the corn will end up in my mouth. Bleh. Nasty warm."

The Lyoko warriors got out from their area; but, as they were leaving, Lyn stayed behind to take a glance towards the back. Jet and his pack were watching them depart, talking to each other like whispering, rumor-spreading folk. The girl spotted Teo staring at her in an almost cold fashion, ignoring his friends conversing. Turning to them slightly, Lyn gave the dirty-blond one a look mixed of relief and happiness; and, out of a spur of a moment, she gave him a wink.

Lyn was giggling to the noise of full-on laughter as she walked away and overheard Jet piling his anger to a crimsoning, confused Teo.


End file.
